The Legend of Zelda: Diamond of Eternity
by mochabutterfly aka hope
Summary: RESTORED! A 16 year old gets dumped into Hyrule, and into a new adventure with our beloved hero, Link! This isn't your average gamer-absorbed-into-game fic... the end has a twist. It's long, but a good read. Please R&R. Thank you!
1. Lonely

A/N 01-27-03 It took nearly forever, but I finally got all the chapters back up and, yes, in the correct order. I was very happy when I learned that girl on had her account deleted That is what happened, right...?. So my fanfic is back up again... I just recently printed my own copy of the thing, lol. Annyywaayy... for anyone who is planning on reading this... er... well, I hope you like it!

A/N Okay, this is my first Zelda fanfic ever. Currently, I'm on chapter 15 but I just started typing it up, so here's chapter one. I know it's pretty boring, but I promise you it gets so much better! Lol. Yah, and these " " are people talking, and these ' ' are people thinking. Please r/r! I'll have the other chapters up soon.

Disclaimer No, I do not own any characters, except those that I made up for this story, like Marissa, Chiro, Tadashi, ect. And if you really want to sue me, all I have are my digimon cards, my Zelda fanfic, and an old peanut butter and jelly sandwich. :P

Chapter I Lonely

"I found the chair's weakness!" Jacob yelled. He began to inhale deeply, sniffing the kitchen chair.

"Knock it off, Jacob! Are you ready to leave?"

"Yes mom! But look-it! I beat up the chair!!"

"That's wonderful dear, where are your bags?"

"Dad's putting them in the car."

"Oh. Right. Now, Marissa..." she turned to look at her daughter. "You've got all the phone numbers, right?"

"Yes..." she sighed.

"And the hotel address?"

"Yes..."

"And you know what to do in case of an emergency, right?"

"Call 911..." Marissa rolled her eyes.

"Good. Well, we're gonna be late if we don't get a move on... C'mon, Jacob!" Marissa's mom grabbed the nine year old, and guided him out the front door.

Once the cobalt van had drove out of sight, Marissa ran to the phone. Her family would be gone for three whole days. She was going to have a party! Well, not really a party... just a few friends over. Maybe to spend the night. She punched in her best friend's phone number, and heard it ring. Her mom answered. "Hello?"

"Hi, is Gwen there?"

"No, she's not. She went to see her great great aunt at the convalescing home. Can I take a message?"

"Umm, yeah... can you tell her Marissa called?" "Sure!"

"Okay, thanks. Bye!" Marissa hung up, slightly disappointed. Then she dialed more numbers.

To her dismay, all of her friends weren't there. Two were on vacation. Three were at camp. And the others weren't home.

'Great...' she thought. 'Nothing to do...' she strode into the living room, and opened a window. The summer heat was making the second level of her house unpleasantly humid. After she plopped down on the plush divan, she clicked the television on. It was a Friday night. Surely something good was on.

She was wrong. For some odd reason, the only things on were the Disney channel, which was playing some show called 'Bear in the Big Blue House', a bunch of cooking shows, some program called 'Why Pudding is Important to Life', and there were baseball games on about ten other channels. The others weren't working. "Stupid Cox..." Marissa muttered as she began to brainstorm other activities that would keep her busy.

The computer had at least seven or eight viruses on it, and froze every five seconds, so that was obviously out of the question. She began to look around the room for any ideas.

Her gaze suddenly fell upon the Nintendo 64 unit. 'Why not?' She saw the game inside the slot was The Legend of Zelda - Ocarina of Time. This was her brother's favorite game, the one he snuck up to play at three in the morning. 'Let's see just how great this game is...' she thought, turning on the console.

With the game up and running, she chose to play her brother's file (which was the only one there) he entitled 'LINK'. 'Link must be that weird robin hood guy's name...' Marissa decided. When she opened the file, she saw that Jacob (who was now greatly annoying his parents, while they drove to the huge soccer championship) had already ready beaten the game, since all the items were collected. She decided she would just beat it again.

The game began as Link stood in the Temple of Time. She moved the camera around until she had a clear view of his face. Marissa spotted the player's guide in a pile of N64 games, and pulled it out. The sun was setting, and it was getting pretty dark, so she switched on a small glass lamp and began flipping through the pages.

She heard a noise. Looking up, she saw that Link was moving. He looked left, then right. Then he put his hands at his belt, and squirmed every which way, as if he were adjusting his clothes.

"Oh... my... God... what a freak..." Marissa said absentmindedly. Then she cupped her hand over her mouth and started giggling, ashamed that she was talking to herself. "I hope no one heard that..." she said to herself, knowing that no one had. She looked at Link on the screen again. He looked back at her. Their eyes met. "I did."


	2. The Eternal Diamond

Chapter II * The Eternal Diamond  
  
Marissa's eyes widened, and she gasped. Still holding her breath, she backed away from the joystick. "That did not just happen..." she whispered. "That SO did not just happen..."  
  
"Yes it did." Link was talking again. Marissa felt a lump in her throat. She tried to calm down. She was imagining all this. It was all in her mind. "This is crazy..." she mumbled, quickly moving back to the controller.  
  
"No it's not! Come with me!" Link spoke again.  
  
"Okay... tome to call it a night... the fun and excitement are overwhelming and I can no longer stand it..." she quickly stuttered, reaching towards the off button.  
  
"No! Listen!" Link cried. "Come with me." Marissa's finger was on the power switch. "Please listen." Link kept saying. "Listen, and come with Navi and me."  
  
Suddenly a flash of brilliant light flooded the room, and a crash of thunder shattered the hot air. Everything faded to black. Total darkness.  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
First there was breathing. Then she could smell the gentle aroma of wild flowers. She opened her eyes, finally to see someone standing over her. Someone dressed in green. Someone with a long sword, and a heavy shield, and a sparkly thing circling their head.  
  
"She's awake!" cried a tiny voice.  
  
"No kidding..." said the one standing over her. Marissa gasped again. She was dreaming. It was the only logical explanation. Why the heck was Link standing over her?! She quickly sat up, and asked, "Who the hell are you?!?!" even though she already knew.  
  
"He's the Hero of Time, Link!" the tiny voice shouted.  
  
"Shut up Navi!" Link swatted at the shining fairy.  
  
"Where am I?" Marissa demanded. "Kokiri Forest in Hyrule!" Navi yelled.  
  
"Navi, if you don't can it, you're going in the bottle!" Link threatened.  
  
"Get away from me!" Marissa stood up. "What am I doing here? How come I'm not in my own house? Why, WHY am I in my brother's video game?!?!" Marissa yelled, her voice raising an octave.  
  
"You have the-"  
  
"That's it, Navi." Link pulled out an empty bottle, and shoved Navi into it.  
  
"Okay, I'm sorry! Lemme out now, Link!" Navi hollered. Link opened the bottle, and Navi flew out and into Link's hat.  
  
"Anyway... hi. My name is Link. Navi brought you here, into the land of Hyrule, because we think you can help us." Link began.  
  
"Hold up. You, Mr. 'Hero of Time', star of the game, needs MY help?!" she asked.  
  
"You don't need to rub it in..." Link sounded slightly insulted.  
  
"Well, I'm not exactly interested, so you can send me home now, okay?"  
  
"That... that isn't possible. Navi, you explain." Navi flew out and happily began to retell the story.  
  
"You see... after Link destroyed Ganondorf, more chaos broke out. Link and I became concerned, so we headed over to see Princess Zelda for the first time in a few months. She was gone. It was obvious that Ganondorf had kidnapped her again. We contacted one of the sages, and she said Ganondorf had taken over the Sacred Realm, where the Triforce is located. Then I remembered this weird legend I heard like a billion years ago, about a sacred diamond... the Diamond of Eternity! It's like a door to the Sacred Realm. In order to unlock it, we need to collect three other gems; the Sapphire of Hope, the Ruby of Love, and the Emerald of Life. We have one. That is the emerald. We need the diamond to open the Sacred Realm where we can get to Ganondorf. Before Princess Zelda sealed him away, but now he's using his part of the Triforce to create destroy Hyrule, from the Sacred Realm! Now, Zelda is imprisoned in the realm by his growing power, and we need to defeat him once and for all! And, of course, save the princess." Navi finished.  
  
"And... You need my help, because...?" Marissa questioned puzzled, expecting a good answer.  
  
"Because! You have power!" Navi answered.  
  
"I do?!"  
  
"Yes. You'll see."  
  
"Oh. Well... I guess I'll help you... but if my parents get home from the soccer championship, and I'm not there..." Marissa hesitantly agreed, aware of the fact that she had nothing better to do.  
  
"Don't worry. In this land, one hour is equivalent to one minute. I did the research." Navi giggled.  
  
"Oh, and about before... sometimes my tunic gets really... uh... uncomfortable... because it's really... uh... tight... so um... yeah." Link tripped over his tongue.  
  
"One time when he was bending over to pick up some arrows-"  
  
"SHUT UP NAVI!!!" Link grabbed the fairy to stop her from talking.  
  
"OKAY... well... um... where to first?" Marissa tried to ignore the two. They were clearly going to make her stay, so she might as well get it over with. Besides, it might even be fun! It certainly sounded more exciting than three days home alone with no connection to the outside world.  
  
"The Sapphire of Hope... it's guarded by the Zora Princess, in the ancient city under Zora's Domain. We can get there by traveling through the massive waterfall," Navi reported.  
  
"Let's go!" Link nodded. 


	3. Love and Horses

Chapter III * Love and Horses  
  
Marissa, Link, and Navi all left the shelter of the leafy tree house. After climbing down the ladder, Marissa realized the flowers she had smelled before were everywhere.  
  
"Where are we again...?" she asked.  
  
"The Kokiri Forest," Navi answered. "Link used to live here before he fell asleep for seven years."  
  
"So... where do you live now?" she asked Link as they walked towards a tunnel.  
  
"Umm... hey, look!" Link quickly pointed to a short person standing in front of the passageway. "It's that weird guy with the unknown gender!" (Inside joke)  
  
"What are these people, midgets?!" Marissa demanded, gazing around at the town's inhabitants.  
  
"The Kokiri never grow older... and if they leave the forest, they'll die." Link explained.  
  
"Oh... a little weird, don't ya think...?" she uttered. "Anyway, where do you live, Link?"  
  
"Well... um... I guess you could say here... or the Temple of Time..."  
  
"No, Link doesn't have a house. He-"  
  
"NAVI!!!!!!!!!!" Link grabbed Navi, and stared at her evilly.  
  
"So you're a homeless person? A hobo? Hah, you're a bum that lives in a forest!" Marissa laughed.  
  
"NO... If I wanted an actual house- which I don't... there are tons of people who I could go live with... like everyone at Lon Lon Ranch, or with the Zora's, or-"  
  
"Or Princess Zelda!!!" Navi giggled. She tried to wiggle her eyebrows, but then remembered she didn't have any.  
  
"Ooooohhhhhh... so this whole thing is a fairy tale... knight in shining armor rescues princess in distress, right?" Marissa watched Link turned red, while Navi yelled, "Fairies don't have tails!!!"  
  
"You don't look like a knight, though. What exactly are you, anyway?"  
  
"I'm Hylian." He answered flatly.  
  
"And what race is this *Princess Zelda*?" she asked, trying to embarrass Link more, if that was even possible.  
  
"Hylian."  
  
"Oh... sounds like you two are a match made in heaven!" she laughed. Link rolled his eyes and snarled.  
  
"You know... you look like Spock."  
  
"Who's that?"  
  
"A guy with pointy ears from these really old movies."  
  
"OW!!!" Link suddenly shouted, grabbing his finger.  
  
"What? Are you hurt from being in love? Love was the only thing that hurt Spock!" Marissa giggled at her own pathetic joke, as she waved her hand around, doing the peace sign that Spock (Star Trek) did with his four fingers separated in the middle.  
  
"NO!!! Navi bit me!!!" Link screamed at the top of his lungs.  
  
"That's what you get for squeezing me too tight!" Navi cried, spinning around Link's long pointy ears. Marissa burst out in laughter as they walked over a bridge and into Hyrule Field.  
  
"You'll have to excuse Navi... she has a habit of biting people..." Link furiously rubbed his teeth-marked finger.  
  
"I didn't know fairies had fangs..." Marissa grinned.  
  
'Ugh, this is gonna be one hell of an adventure...' Link thought. 'Why did Navi have to choose her? Talk about a bad attitude...'  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
The huge field stretched out before them. 'It must cover over one million miles!' Marissa guessed, staring in awe. Suddenly, soft music filled the air. She looked over at Link. He was playing some type of instrument. It was a quiet song that lulled along with the wind. When he lowered the object from his lips, galloping could be heard in the distance. Marissa strained, searching for the cause. A horse. It pranced closer and closer. It galloped up to them, and soon it was next to her with Link it patting it on the head.  
  
"This is Epona." He said, a hint of pride in his voice, climbing into the saddle. "Come on. We'll never get there if we walk." Link held out a hand, signaling for Marissa to grasp it and climb aboard. She hesitated, sensing the animal's tenseness. The creature's eyes were glossy, and were partly covered by her soft white mane.  
  
"Come on," Link urged a second time. Marissa grabbed onto the gloved hand, and she was yanked upward. She was shocked at how strong Link was. Before she knew it, they were cutting through the wind on the body of the chocolate horse. 


	4. River's Clash

A/N ~ Okay, just so you all know... I have nothing against Navi!!! I love her because she's so... annoying! Lol. Like in the game when she always screams, "Hey! Link! Watch out!" and I find it really funny... (I'm weird, I know) but really, I don't have anything against any of the characters in the game... I just think it's weird what they do or say. (Like Ganon with his rug/cape... WEEDWACKER!!! ...Or the midget Korokis...) Oh yah, and this IS NOT A MARY SUE! Yup. Okay, I'll shut up now... please r/r! Thanks!  
  
Chapter IV * River's Clash  
  
The cool wind wisped past Marissa's face and through her coal black hair. Epona was much too fast. She found herself clinging to Link for protection from the icy blasts of wind that were being fired at them from cloud- cannons.  
  
"Are we almost there?" she yelled to be heard over the wind.  
  
"Almost," was his answer. "A little further."  
  
When they finally slowed down and came to a halt, they were along the side of a river. It was dark now. Navi glowed, giving off a dim blue light as she floated around Link's head. He was the first off the horse, and quickly helped Marissa down too. "Follow me. This way," he said, walking on a narrow path up the river.  
  
"What about Epona?" she demanded, patting the horse on the nose. She spoke as if he treated Epona badly. However, by the looks of it, she obviously liked Marissa. 'Who could ever like her...?' Link asked himself as he said aloud, "She'll be fine here. She can't come with us."  
  
Marissa gave the now-calm animal a last pat, and then proceeded to follow Link. The rushing of the river got louder the closer they got. Suddenly, Link hopped onto a lily pad-like platform. "C'mon!" he grabbed Marissa by the shoulder and pulled her on with him. "This'll get us to the waterfall faster."  
  
She watched as they soared over gushing rapids and hills with rocky streams that all fed into the main river. Soon they reached a bridge. Link leapt off the platform, pulling Marissa down with him.  
  
"Oww! Would you watch it?!" she yelled as Link ignored her and ran across the bridge, still gripping her arm.  
  
"Look!" he pointed to a huge waterfall, still not listening.  
  
"We're here! C'mon Link, play the song!" Navi ordered. He led the way up to the small area directly in front of the waterfall. Once again, he pulled out the same instrument. "What is that, a harmonica?" Marissa asked, a hint of sarcasm in her voice.  
  
"No, it's an ocarina. More specifically, it's the Ocarina of Time," he corrected. Link began to play. This song was different from the last. Navi bobbed up and down near Link's ear, in rhythm with the tune. Suddenly, as though Link had commanded it to, the waterfall was cut off. Barely any water was flowing down now. Marissa looked around confused. Then she saw Link hop across and into the waterfall. "Jump!" he yelled to her.  
  
"Are you crazy?!?!" she accused. "I'm NOT jumping."  
  
"You have to!!!" Link shouted.  
  
"No I don't! I'm not getting killed!"  
  
"FINE! You can just STAY there!" Link spun around and began to walk away. She was so impossible! He felt his face getting hot.  
  
"Link! We need her!!!" Navi flew in front of him.  
  
"No, we don't. There is no way I can do this with her." Link shouted at Navi. "Why does she have to be the one?!"  
  
"I dunno... I mean... maybe she's not that bad... you don't even know her!"  
  
"I don't want to know her! I've never met anyone so stubborn!"  
  
"You have to go get her!"  
  
"I'm not going."  
  
"You have to, Link!"  
  
"I'm not going!!!"  
  
"I'LL BITE YOU!!!"  
  
"I'm going..." Link sighed and turned around. He saw Marissa standing with her back towards him, her arms crossed.  
  
"No way," he decided after a moment. He turned back around and started walking into the tunnel.  
  
"Link!!!" Navi cried. Obediently, he turned around again, and reluctantly called her name. "Marissa!"  
  
"Ya know Link, I don't think I'm helping much. You'll be better off without me. I understand if you can't send me home. I'll just wait here until you save your princess."  
  
"Uh oh..." Navi whispered.  
  
"I guess you could say I'm being stubborn." It was obvious that she had overheard Link and Navi's conversation.  
  
"We need you." Link insisted.  
  
"No you don't." she said simply. "You said so yourself, Link."  
  
"Without you there's no way we can save the princess."  
  
"Forget it. Count me out."  
  
"Marissa, please." Link bent down and stretched out his arm. There was a long pause before she finally turned around. Taking a deep breath, she stepped back, and then threw herself forward, shrieking as she almost fell. She had her arms over the edge and was trying to pull herself up, since she had purposely avoided Link's offer of help. He quickly pulled her up as she yelled, "I could have gotten up myself! I don't need your help!"  
  
Link ignored her and walked deeper into the passage. Marissa stood there for a moment. She watched Navi float in the air for a second, deciding if she would follow Link, even though her decision was obvious. She twittered after him.  
  
Marissa felt her lips breaking into a smile, but she quickly stopped and looked at the ground instead. She ran to catch up. 


	5. Submerge in the Waterfall

Chapter V * Submerge in the Waterfall  
  
"Pass the Courvoisier!" Navi yelled. Link rolled his eyes, and kept on walking. "I was just trying to cheer you up..." she whispered, flying into Link's hair.  
  
"Does your fairy live in your hair?" Marissa suddenly asked. Link practically jumped out of his Kokiri boots, since he hadn't been aware that she was following. He had assumed that she had stayed at the waterfall's ledge. "No," he answered.  
  
"Does she have lice? I bet she's the lice fairy! The flying lice ball!"  
  
Link didn't get a chance to respond. In front of them was the aquatic village of the Zora's. Stretched out below was a crystal lake with a waterfall splashing down a wall of the cave-like chamber.  
  
"Wow..." Marissa said, shocked. Suddenly, a longheaded fish-like creature leapt out from the water, and then dove back down leaving water to spray in all directions.  
  
"What the hell was that?!" Marissa demanded.  
  
"That," Link said, walking closer to the edge of the platform they were on, "...was a Zora." He jumped into the water.  
  
"I really hope you're not expecting me to follow you, because there's no way I'm going swimming."  
  
"Okay then, you can use this." Link threw her his hook shot. "I'll see you by the waterfall." He swam away, leaving Marissa to pick up the tool and study it. When she realized she'd go flying across to the other side of the lake if she used it, she took a deep breath and plunged into the water.  
  
Link kicked at the water rapidly, basically because he was angry. Of all the people in the entire universe, he had to be stuck with her. Navi's quiet voice interrupted his thoughts. "You really should give her a chance..."  
  
"WHAT?! And you're not insulted in the least, are you, LICEBALL?" Link climbed out of the water and onto a small ledge. Navi didn't reply. Instead, she flew in circles, showering sparkles all over the place.  
  
When Marissa climbed onto the ledge with them, she immediately began complaining about how cold the water was, and how she was going to catch a cold and "die" because she was in wet clothing. Suddenly, Link's tunic changed colors. Now it was a deep blue.  
  
"Navi, we have that extra tunic, right? The one that we had to go buy when you played that stupid April Fools joke and you told me that Saria stole the original that King Zora gave us...?"  
  
"Yeah, I think," she answered. Link ripped out a waddled bundle of the same blue material and shoved it into Marissa's arms.  
  
"Put it on," he directed.  
  
"What IS it?"  
  
"A Zora Tunic... so you can breath underwater."  
  
"I don't think so! I'm not wearing that rag!" she said, shoving it back at him.  
  
"You HAVE to. We're probably going to be under water for a while, so unless you're part fish, I suggest you put it on." Link bent down and picked up the hook shot that she had swum over with. He held it out, looking for the right place to shoot it. When he finally found the circle pad he was looking for, Marissa had put the tunic on. Instead of being a tunic like Link's however, the pale fuchsia halter and denim clam diggers she was wearing were the same shade of deep blue.  
  
"Ready?" he asked.  
  
"For... what?" she looked at him, confused. He sighed, grabbed her, aimed, shot the hook shot, and went flying under the waterfall, Marissa in his arms. Now they were in a small place behind it. Marissa glared at him for suddenly grabbing her.  
  
"Okay, we're going down now. Are you good at diving?" he asked, putting the hook shot away.  
  
"Um... I guess so..." she shot him a nervous glance.  
  
"Good. Let's go." Link suddenly jumped down. The waterfall pushed him far under the whitecaps and foam, and he swam through the cave-like tunnel at the bottom. With Marissa behind, Link surfaced into a huge city. Lights from the towering buildings sparkled in the distance.  
  
"Where are we now?" Marissa asked.  
  
"The ancient city of the Zora's..." Link answered, moving forward.  
  
"Wait... how come I can talk underwater? You're not supposed to be able to do this... what the...?"  
  
"This is HYRULE... not wherever you came from." He responded almost smugly, annoyed that she hadn't seemed to figure that out yet.  
  
Marissa ignored his comment, and followed.  
  
"Link, we have no clue to where the palace is! Let's ask someone!" Navi suggested.  
  
"Okay..." Link said sarcastically, then opened a door, and walked into the closet of the coral houses.  
  
There was a fish like creature standing over a stove. Her head had a long fish tail hanging from the back of it, and her arms and legs had fins sweeping down from them.  
  
"You should have knocked!!!" Navi whispered harshly.  
  
"Oh my!" the Zora shouted, turning around. "Who are you?!" she asked.  
  
"Um... I'm Link, and this is Marissa." Link said. Suddenly, at least twenty smaller Zora's came running into the room, yelling and screaming.  
  
"Mommy! Mom! Is dinner ready?!" they were all shrieking.  
  
"NOT YET!!!!" she screamed to be heard over their shrill voices. They all ran back into the room they had come from, and Marissa slowly turned to look at Link. He was as scared as she was.  
  
"Um... could you please give us directions to the Zora Palace?" Link asked.  
  
"Hmm... Sure. But you have to help me in return. If you can run to the town shop and buy some seaweed... I've sort of run out... I'll send my oldest child to lead you to the palace." She bargained.  
  
"No way! We can find the place ourselves! We don't have time for your seaweed crisis!" Marissa suddenly blurted out. Link gave her an annoyed look, and yelled, "Are you CRAZY? You have no idea how huge this place is!" he turned to look at the exhausted Zora. "Yes, we'll get it for you. She just doesn't know how enormous this beautiful city is..." he eyed Marissa, as she coughed and mumbled, "Suck up..." under her breath.  
  
"Thank you, young man! This should be enough money." She handed him a bag. "You have no idea how much work it is, caring for twenty seven and a half youngsters!"  
  
"Twenty seven and a half? What do you mean?" Marissa wanted to know.  
  
"Oh... when she was a baby we had a freak accident with a blender and some foot-loops..." she hesitated. Marissa and Link exchanged disturbed glances.  
  
"Well... um... uh... oh yeah! We won't be long!" Link spun around and quickly walked out of the house, Marissa at his heels.  
  
"Twenty seven and a half kids? FOOT-LOOPS?! What the hell are foot-loops!?" she demanded once they were walking down the street.  
  
"I dunno... probably a cereal or something. But she sure had a lot of kids..."  
  
"No kidding!"  
  
They were actually talking. While they walked down the alleys in their blue clothing, Navi floated behind wondering how long it would be before the fights broke out again.  
  
  
  
Alright, another chapter is done. I'm sorry it took forever. Currently, I'm on Chapter 17. I really need to type the rest... please review!! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE!!!!!! I really would like to know how I'm doing on this story, because I really like writing and I really want to know what I can do to make it better. Really. So please review... thanks so much! 


	6. Encounter the Chaos

A/N ~ Okay, the chaos in this chapter is from Digimon, season three. It's all that pink bubbly stuff that takes over the digital world and then turns into the D-Reaper! ... yaah. Just so you know. : D  
  
Chapter VI * Encounter the Chaos  
  
"Ewww! We have to BUY this? They actually EAT this?!"  
  
"I guess... but we have to buy it. We need to know where the palace is."  
  
"I'm not touching it."  
  
"I never said you had to! Nayru... chill out!"  
  
The two stood at the front counter of a tiny grocery store. They looked down at the sloppy lopsided mixture of wet seaweed, a lumpy white paste that looked like molded mayonnaise, and some tiny red seasonings that appeared to be moving.  
  
"Can I help you?" asked the Zora salesman.  
  
"Oh, uh... yeah... can we have a container full of that there seaweed?"  
  
"That'll be 65 rupees!" the Zora handed Link a plastic container full of the smelling mixture. Link handed him three red rupees, and one blue one.  
  
"Rupees?" Marissa asked as they left the shop.  
  
"Yeah. Rupees..." Link nodded his head, as if he were agreeing with her.  
  
"No. I mean, what are they!?"  
  
"Oh, it's our form of money... don't you have like... paper or something?"  
  
"Well, no, it's not paper... dollars." She corrected him.  
  
"Oh. Whatever."  
  
"Hurry up!" Navi suddenly yelled at them. They caught up with her and when they finally reached their destination, they found something very unusual.  
  
As they opened the door and walked inside, Navi, not paying attention, (as usual) flew into a pink bubble.  
  
"AHHHH!!! I'm gonna die!!!!!!" she screamed as the slimy substance began to envelop her. "My WING!!! OW!!! It's dissolving! Ow! OW! OW!!!!!"  
  
Link grabbed her other wing and ripped her out.  
  
"Eww, what IS this stuff?" Marissa demanded as another shiny pink bubble floated by. The stuff was everywhere! At least ten smaller ones were hovering around near the back of the room and there were three huge bubbles that were closer to them.  
  
"Get out of the way!" Link shouted at her.  
  
"Why?!"  
  
"Just go into the next room or something!"  
  
"But-"  
  
"JUST GO!!!!!"  
  
"Fine!" she ran into the next room and stood in the doorway. Link pulled out a red sphere that was frozen inside a diamond-crystal. He waved it around and screamed, "Din's Fire!!!" A huge shield of flames surrounded him and then flared out, reaching each corner of the room. The pink oozing bubbles quickly turned to ash and floated to the floor of sand. Marissa came running back into the room in bewilderment.  
  
"What the hell did you just do?!" she yelled.  
  
"I used Din's Fire... it's a great fairy spell." Link answered, pushing her back into the room beyond.  
  
"What do you think that stuff was?" he asked Navi.  
  
"I haven't the slightest idea... it was weird though... evil." She replied.  
  
"Yeah, definitely. So where did everyone go?" Link began to search rooms for the Zora woman and her twenty-seven and a half kids.  
  
"This is a messed up dream... it isn't happening... okay, I'm SO ready to wake up..." Marissa was talking to herself alone in the kitchen. When she had realized no one was with her, instead of following Link she sat down on a stool in front of the tiny table. Suddenly, the door burst open.  
  
"Where is it, ma'm?" yelled a voice.  
  
"It's... it's gone!" another voice cried.  
  
"There! Her! Cuff her!!!" cried the third voice, a male Zora with a strange navy blue hat on. He snapped on what resembled handcuffs, and picked up Marissa.  
  
"AHHH!!! Put me down, you crazy lunatic!!!" she shrieked, purposely not calling Link's name for help. She kicked the Zora, and continued to scream but Link came running anyhow.  
  
"Get him, too!" they yelled.  
  
"You both were responsible for that pink bubbly stuff, weren't you!?" the female Zora hollered.  
  
"Of course not! Remember?! You asked us to get you seaweed?! We came back and all the pink stuff was here so I got rid of it with a fairy spell!"  
  
All three of them gasped.  
  
"DARK MAGIC!!!!"  
  
"No, it's not dark magic!!! For Nayru's sake, fairy spells are only taught to those who have the ability to use them! They're not evil!!! Who do you think I am, Ganondorf?!"  
  
"GANONDORF!!!!" they all gasped.  
  
Link rolled his eyes. "I'm on a mission to save Princess Zelda, and destroy Ganondorf once and for all, and I need to get to the palace to talk to the princess and this lady promised us that if we went to get her some seaweed she'd send her kid with us to show us the way!" he explained.  
  
"Ohhh!!!" they all sighed. Now the two officers looked at the woman waiting for some type of direction.  
  
"Put them down," she finally said.  
  
"You can leave now... I mean, since the pink stuff is gone..."  
  
"Okay, ma'm!" The two left and the herd of twenty-seven and a half children came running in screaming. Once she had sent them in the other room, the Zora woman explained how pink bubbles suddenly arose form the ground and they were all in her kitchen. Then, once Link had given her the container of seaweed, she invited them to stay for dinner.  
  
"Then I'll send Chiro, my oldest daughter to show you where the palace is."  
  
"Oh, um, no... Sorry. We can't really stay to eat... we really don't have enough time... we're sorta on that rescue mission, ya see. We'd love to, but we've gotta get to the palace." Link turned down the offer.  
  
"Oh, that's okay. Don't worry about it! I'll get Chiro now."  
  
Once she had screamed her daughter's name a few times, Chiro finally came.  
  
"Show these two young visitors where the palace is, okay? And be home in time for dinner." She ordered.  
  
"Yes, mamma!" Chiro said, saluting her mom.  
  
"Don't get lost! And remember what I told you about seducing Hylian men!!!"  
  
Marissa gave both Link and the Zora child disturbed glances.  
  
"Come on! It's this way!" Chiro slammed the door and began to lead them down back alleys and side streets that eventually led to the Zora Palace. 


	7. The Princess of the Zora Palace

A/N ~ Sorry I haven't updated... have some pity on me, I just moved from Connecticut to California. Clear across the country. I know I shouldn't blame my lazy butt on that, but... oh well. I'm currently on chapter 29 of this fic. I really need to catch up. And I really need to change the rating. When I finally get there, I'll change it to PG-13. I don't think it's quite... R... lol I miss my home... I'm only 13!!! I can't deal with this pressure!!! Lol *ahem*... anyway... please R+R! Oh, and that review by Kristin...? You coward! You could have at least left your email address! Lol Oh well. THANKS FOR THE SUGGESTION. Heh. Okay, I'm done. :D  
  
Disclaimer ~ No.  
  
Chapter VII * The Princess of the Zora Palace  
  
"My mom put a sign on our bathroom door that says 'No sex in the bathroom!'" Chiro laughed. She giggled the whole way, making stupid jokes that she thought were completely hysterical.  
  
"Well, slap my butt and call me a weasel!" she continued cracking up.  
  
"Um... how... old are you...?" Link asked.  
  
"I'm eleven and a half! I'm the oldest in my family. Ma tells me not to get married. I don't know why. I'm secretly engaged to our neighbor!" she laughed. "But don't tell no one... because if ma finds out, she'll whip me with a wet noodle! Tee hee hee!"  
  
They turned down a main road. At the end of the street, the Zora Palace stood in majesty. It was completely made of crystal glass.  
  
"There's the Zora Palace. Want me to walk you to the door?" Chiro asked.  
  
"Oh, um, no. That's okay. You can go now," Link answered quickly.  
  
"Okay," she shrugged. "But you can't enter without proof that you're related to the royal family." She turned and began to walk away.  
  
"Strange kid..." Navi whispered. Link nodded and continued forward. Marissa was following behind. Once they finally made it to the front doors that were at least twelve feet tall, a lofty, broad-shouldered Zora began to talk. "Do you have the royal family's permission to enter the Zora Palace?"  
  
"Not exactly... but I have this song."  
  
Marissa was studying the carvings on the doors when she looked over at Link. He was playing the same song he had played at the waterfall, back at the river.  
  
"Ah! Of course, you may enter, sir." The Zora said.  
  
"Thank you," Link politely replied as he walked through the doors that had been opened. Now they were inside. There was air here. "You can take off the Zora tunic, now..." Link told Marissa, taking his off. It was like taking off an invisible shirt while your clothes changed back to their original colors. Now that Link was back in his green tunic and Marissa's clothes changed back, they started up the steep winding staircase. The palace seemed completely empty. Since everything was pure glass, they could see inside every room they passed by while climbing higher and higher. Everything inside was coated in metallic silver. It seemed like they were climbing the steps forever.  
  
When the two finally reached the top, there was a mirror arch that stretched to the ceiling. Through the arch laid a chamber with a tall throne in the back. The crystal glass sparkled under the sunlight that poured through the clear ceiling. Obviously, the top of the palace was emerged from the water in a hidden part of Lake Hylia.  
  
Perched on top of the towering throne, was a female Zora. The fins on her arms were so long they almost touched the floor. The ones dangling from her hips flared out like a long dress. They were lying on the floor, stretched out around the base of the throne.  
  
"Welcome." She spoke gracefully. Link quickly stepped closer and got to his knees, bowing. Marissa sank down next to him.  
  
"Your Majesty..." Link began.  
  
"There is no need to explain. I know who you are. Link." She smiled. "Princess Ruto has told me so much about you... she says you and her are engaged. Honestly, she is such a dreamer..." she laughed. "I am Princess Sycara. I rule this city of ancient Zora history. Ruto is my sister... just so you know the relation." She slipped off the throne, all her fins cascading down behind her. "The problem is serious..." the princess started, holding her hands together. "I've had a premonition that you were coming. That the chaos was coming... that's the pink bubbly substance you found at that woman's house. I'm sure you've already figured this out, but it's the result of Ganondorf. That evil monster... my sister... she is in grave danger. Ganondorf has access to the Chamber of Sages. He's taking their power. His piece of the Triforce has also added to the tremendous collection of energy he's gathering. And... to make matters worse... he has princess Zelda. And with control over her piece of the Triforce... his power is growing every second. Link, he needs your piece. He has so much power already; all he needs is your piece. And then..." Sycara's voice trailed off and she shook her head. "You've got to save them. I'm afraid all I can do is open the entrance to the Sapphire Temple... there, you'll need to collect the three silver spheres... and then, the Sapphire of Hope will be yours. With all three jewels, you can unlock the Diamond of Eternity... and enter the Sacred Realm. But you'll need this..." Sycara raised her arms, and down came a sphere. It fit in the palm of her hand, as she walked closer to Link, her hand outstretched. He stood up and accepted the object.  
  
"It's one of the silver spheres... I'm sorry I only have one... it has been passed down from our royal Zora family for over a century. My ancestor retrieved it from the temple as an act of honor, but now you must collect the other two... take it. You cannot get the Sapphire without it." she went on. "Be brave Link. There are many obstacles you must face... much more dangerous than this. Be brave."  
  
He smiled, and thanked her for the gift.  
  
"Now..." she closed her eyes, and bent down, her hands over the floor. The glass disappeared, and there was a staircase that lead down below the castle. "Be brave," Sycara repeated. Link nodded. He, Marissa, and Navi all proceeded to slowly make their way down the long, deep staircase. 


	8. The Sapphire Temple

A/N ~ Here we go, chapter 8! I actually made this update within... like, a week or somethin'? I dunno. Oh well. I don't really care either. lol Okay would someone please review? I've had only like... 8 reviews since like... forever. Does anyone have any opinion about this fic at all? Is anyone even reading this?! If you are, I love you. And please please review. Thanks.  
  
Disclaimer ~ Nintendo owns them. Not me. Of course, I'd like to, but I'm not the lucky type. Oh well. : P  
  
Chapter VIII * The Sapphire Temple  
  
"Are you sure you need my help?" Marissa moaned as she forced her legs to keep moving. "It seems like this little *adventure* we're on if just going up and down steps..."  
  
"We're going down below the Zora city. That's where Princess Sycara said the Sapphire Temple is... there, we'll probably have to find the other two silver spheres." Link said.  
  
"No, I mean... what do I have to do? What'd my part in all this? Why do you need me...?"  
  
"Well... um... we aren't exactly sure. You see... we found you, and you fit the description from the legend. So Navi said you were 'the one', and we brought you here. But... neither of us know why... exactly..." Link hesitated.  
  
"Wait. Rewind... what legend?"  
  
"The legend of the Eternal Diamond!" Navi answered.  
  
"Which... is...?"  
  
"The legend... it explains everything... 'As the sacred Diamond of Eternity appears to her once more, playing the endless song again will unlock and open the door...'" Navi recited. "That's part of it."  
  
"What's the eternal song?" Marissa asked.  
  
"No clue..." Link shrugged.  
  
"We'll find out eventually. But as of now... we have no idea." Navi added in.  
  
"Wait. So... you guys brought me here... and you don't even know what I'm supposed to do...?" she felt her voice rising.  
  
"Look!" Link yelled. In front of them was a blazing blue fire, surrounding the doorway. "How the heck... how are we gonna get past this freakishly blue fire...?" Marissa asked sarcastically.  
  
"Easy," He declared, after gazing around. He pulled out the hookshot and aimed it at the center of the ceiling in the room beyond, past the azure flames.  
  
"C'mon," he yanked Marissa closer to him, and fired the hookshot. The two landed in the center of the next room.  
  
"Oh my GOD!!! Don't TOUCH ME!!! I swear, if you do that ONE MORE TIME... you're gonna be in so much pain, you won't even be able to BLINK!!!" Marissa screamed.  
  
"Sorry... if you could have gotten through those flames by yourself, next time you can GO AHEAD... since you don't need my help." Link suggested hotly.  
  
"I would just like you to give me some warning before you grab me and decide to swing across all this fire!!! I mean, I don't even know you! I don't exactly trust you with my life, okay?!"  
  
"Whatever." Link was, again, ignoring her. He was consumed in looking around. There were three pillars; one in the center of the room, one on the left, and one on the right. They each had a hollow mid section where there was an engraving, written in the ancient Hylian language. There was also a viewable slot, where it looked as if something was to be inserted to fill the gap.  
  
"I guess what I'm trying to say is don't touch me, or grab me suddenly. It just... freaks me out." Marissa was still babbling on and on.  
  
"Hmm..." Link sighed, still not paying attention. He noticed there was a doorway that was concealed with rocks. They were blocking the entrance to the corridor beyond.  
  
"Hopefully..." Link muttered, " That's the chamber the Zoras got the sphere from..." He reached into his pocket, pulled it out, and began to study it. Marissa was still lecturing him. The sphere sparkled and seemed the glow with mystery.  
  
"Okay, whatever!!" Link said loudly, trying to shut up Marissa. She folded her arms across her chest, irritably.  
  
"Fine, be that way!" she shouted.  
  
"I will," Link replied simply. She snarled and turned away from him. He walked into the doorway of the tunnel off the right side of the chamber.  
  
"Are you coming? Or staying here?" he asked. No reply. He turned and continued into the hallway.  
  
The long dark tunnel dumped Link into a huge pool of musty water. He couldn't help but scream as he felt his stomach twist into knots and flop around inside as he fell downward. "AAAAHHHHEEERRRRAAAAHHHHAAAGGGGAAAHHHHRRRAAARRR!!!!!!" He splashed down into the filthy aminal water. He was sucked underwater, and when he finally kicked his way up to the surface, he heard a voice screaming too. A body came flying down and splashed into the water next to him. When Marissa surfaced, her wet hair clinging to her face, she glared at Link. "You had this planned. You set me up!" she accused.  
  
"I said you could stay there if you wanted. It was your choice to follow! And NO, I didn't purposely come this way just so we could both fall a million feet into dirty water." Link stubbornly responded as he began swimming across the huge body of water, to the other side of the room. When they reached the platform, Link led the way into the next room.  
  
It was completely dark.  
  
"Okay, Link, do something!" Navi ordered. "I can't see whose hair I'm in!"  
  
"AHH!!!" Marissa screamed rubbing her hands through her hair.  
  
"Navi, what the heck are you talking about? You have your little glowy light thing around you! You're the only light in here and you say you can't see?!" Link rolled his eyes, laughing. Still, he took out his fire arrows, and shot one up in the air. It flared out, and gave off enough light for them to see the three unlit torches in the distance. When it was dark again, he used the flaming arrows to light each of the torches. Once they were all blazing, they heard the walls rumble.  
  
In the center of the room stood a huge spider with three fiery red eyes. Marissa sucked in a breath of air and began shaking.  
  
"Okay... the seaweed was gross... that 'chaos' stuff was freaky... but, NO... I am NOT okay with spiders!!! Oh my God!!! EW!!!!" she shuttered violently, and ran into the corner.  
  
Link yanked out his Master Sword. He leapt in that air, slicing the monster. The spider slashed at Link with its two front legs. "Argh!" he moaned as the prickly leg dug into his back. Now, Link decided it might be a good time to pull out his shield. He performed a spin attack, paralyzing the giant insect. He swung the blade at the bug's pulsing third eye, easily the biggest. The sword pierced the eyeball.  
  
"EW!!!" Marissa was now beginning to hyperventilate. She gagged as orangey liquid spewed out everywhere as the beast collapsed to the floor, lifelessly. Her complexion was almost green. "Ohhh my God..." she groaned. Link tore the weapon from the spider's slashed face, and wiped the sticky liquid on his tunic.  
  
"C'mon," he yelled to Marissa.  
  
He showed no compassion... no sympathy... but still, it wasn't hate. He walked into the doorway that had been blocked by the spider-monster. 


	9. The Final Silver Sphere

A/N ~ Whoo woo, chapter nine! I'm updating pretty quickly, too. :P We'll do a short a/n now... since the last one was so long. Oh well. Thanks to whoever reviews... I love you forever! lol Please R n' R!  
  
Disclaimer ~ No, I do not own the Zelda peoples. If I did I would be making a new video game, not writing fanfics.  
  
Chapter IX * The Final Silver Sphere  
  
"Ah, yes... the lovely Zelda..."  
  
"Get away from me, you monster!"  
  
"Hey! I don't like your language! If I were you, I'd speak better to the one who has your life in his hands..."  
  
"I don't have to do anything you tell me to. I'm warning you, if don't surrender... well... Link's gonna come and kick your ass!!!"  
  
"I've heard enough!" Ganondorf yelled. Zelda was, again, incased into a rose-tinted crystal.  
  
She glared at him, and then crossed her arms. Ganondorf spun and left the room. He flew down the winding stairs, anxious to leave his castle.  
  
'Well, not really a castle... but good enough for now.' It was really the Temple of Time of the Sacred Realm. Of course, he had fixed it up a bit, with an honoring statue, dedicated to the one and only, himself. 'Stupid princess...' he thought. 'Thought she could seal me away. HAH.'  
  
He gazed around. The once heaven-like land of the Sacred Realm was now a hell. The skies that had been bright and sunny now were dark and stormy.  
  
"They thought the Triforce was safe here..." he chuckled to himself, remembering how easy it had been to access the Sacred Realm once Princess Zelda had 'sealed him away'. Now that the Realm was overflowing with Ganon's piece, power, and becoming extremely off balance with Zelda and Link's, the chaos was showing up all over Hyrule. Not to mention he had all the Sages captured and was using their power to strengthen his Triforce piece.  
  
"Mwwaaa haa haaaa haaa haaaaaa haa haaaaaa!!!" Ganondorf's laughter boomed throughout the entire realm. "Foolish mortals!!!" he screamed. Then he began choking, coughing, and gagging. He reached his arm around, and slapped himself on the back. When he had finally regained his dignity, he headed over to the other temple, the one on the other side of the realm; The Chamber of Sages.  
  
* * *  
  
The room was huge. There was a small path that led to an island floating in the middle of the room. On it, resting on a waist-high pillar was the sphere.  
  
Link went first, since the path was only wide enough for one person. Navi bobbed along with him and Marissa followed close behind.  
  
"One more..." Link muttered, placing his hand on the shining sphere. The instant he picked it up from its stand, the three were zapped into swirling darkness. In moments, they were back in the room with the three towering pillars. "Back where we started..." Marissa reported, in a matter-of-fact tone.  
  
Link, once again, didn't reply. He headed into the chamber directly in front of them. This one, luckily, didn't dump them down one million feet into a pool of water. Instead, it led them to a tiny room with a locked door. "Hmm..." Link pulled out the Lens of Truth and peered through it. Sure enough, there was a visible door on the left wall. He entered it. Here, there was a room with five silver rupees scattered around, in a circular pattern. Link quickly ran to grab them all, when he was hit by a blast of fire.  
  
"ERRAH!!" he yelped, spinning around to see what had hit him. It was the eye-shaped symbol over the door. He quickly fired an arrow at it, permanently closing the eyelid. Then, after grabbing the three other silver rupees, a wooden chest emerged from the center of the room. Link kicked it open and collected a small key that would surely unlock the door in the other room.  
  
With Marissa quietly following like a shadow and Navi randomly bursting out into song, they returned to the first room with the single locked door. Link turned the key in the massive lock and ventured into the room beyond.  
  
This room was exactly the same as the room before that had had the giant spider lurking in the back. The only differences were the three torches. They were already burning. Link felt himself tense up. Was someone else here? Did someone beat him to lighting the torches?  
  
"Navi... can you just um... fly around to make sure that we're the only ones here?" Link slowly asked. Navi nodded and sprinted off into the dark corners of the room, leaving a trail of her sparkling fairy dust behind her. Link continued to look around, trying to decide what to do next.  
  
"Do you think someone else was here first?" Marissa suddenly asked. "Maybe... that could explain why the torches are lit..." Just then, Navi flew up to Link and reported that they there were absolutely the only ones in the room.  
  
"I guess," Link thought aloud, "We have to reverse it." he took out a bundle of arrows coated with silvery ice. He aimed one at each torch, and fired. The ice froze the fire, putting it out.  
  
Now the room was completely dark. Once more, the walls began to shake and three blood-red eyes suddenly burned in front of them.  
  
"Oh no..." Marissa groaned. "Not again!" she walked backward and as soon as she was against the wall, she slid her way into the corner.  
  
Link unsheathed his sword and held up his shield. Since it was dark, the only things Link could see were the spider's fiery eyes.  
  
He could feel the humid breath coming at him in full blasts. With a slash to the bug's leg, it was paralyzed. He went for the huge third eye. The beast was too quick. It began to move around in a circle. Then, Link screamed. The insect had picked him up with its fangs.  
  
Now Marissa was shaking even more. She couldn't calm down. She slid down to the floor, and pulled her knees up against her. Wrapping her arms around her legs, she buried her head and tried to block out Link's horrified cries.  
  
"Why does it have to be a spider?" she asked, her voice not even a whisper. Suddenly, there was a sickening sound... The throbbing eye had been slit open again. Marissa gritted her teeth, and squeezed her eyes shut tighter. She forced herself to stand up. She didn't need Link knowing about her intense fear of spiders. When he did walk over, sliding the sword back in it's sheathe, he gave her a puzzled look. That's when she realized her breathing was harsh and raspy. "You aren't that scared, are you?" he questioned. "You're trembling."  
  
"I... I'm fine..." she choked out. "Let's go... get the sphere..." This time it was Marissa who lead the way out of the chamber. 


	10. Pass the Courvoisier

A/N ~ Here's chapter 10. Thanks to everyone who is reviewing, I love you, and thanks for the comments. Now, obviously, I cannot spell co-vas-ee-ay. My dad say's its 'couvisier', but Microsoft Word says that's wrong. If someone knows how to spell it, please tell me... ^_^() lol. This isn't the best title, either. Oh well. Any suggestions...? This chapter is a lil' weird... you could probably tell from my strange title. Link has a weird flashback, and Ganon flirts with the sages... they're pretty weird too... and trust me, they get weirder. lol I really wish I could have rated this Action/Adventure/Romance/Humor, because there are a lot of funny scenes... well, anyways, please r/r. thanks! :D  
  
Disclaimer ~ I do not own any of the Zelda characters, as far as I know :P  
  
Chapter X * Pass the Courvoisier  
  
Now that they had all three spheres, they were zapped back into the three- pillar main room. Link took out the two they had collected and the one Princess Sycara had given him, and began putting them into the slots in each pillar.  
  
Marissa was still shaking.  
  
"We're gonna get the sapphire! We're gonna get the sapphire!!" Navi was chanting. "Hey! Link! After we get the sapphire, we'll only have one of the jewels left! And then we can get the Eternal Diamond, and open the Sacred Realm, and THEN... tee hee hee!!!" Navi giggled. "We can save *Zelda*!!"  
  
"Navi, what is your problem?!" Link demanded.  
  
"Oh, Link, stop trying to deny it... it's pretty obvious the kind of stuff that goes on between you and her... mwwaa haa haaa!" Navi began laughing uncontrollably, and she almost fell down, laughing so hard. "You're not very innocent!!"  
  
"CAN IT!" Link screamed, his voice echoing and bouncing off the stone walls.  
  
Silence.  
  
"I was just kidding, Link..." Navi whispered.  
  
He slid the last ball into its slot. There was a flashing light, and the floor beneath them vibrated. They were engulfed in the brilliant light.  
  
When the brightness faded, there was a stone stand in the center of the room. It was engraved with a small symbol that appeared to be a twisted rose. Perched on top of it, was a glistening blue crystal.  
  
Link grinned, proud of his efforts. He slowly made his way up to the sparkling stone. There was had a rim of gold around the circular stone, and the twisted rose crest was drawn in gold in the center of the gem. Link reached towards it, and then hesitated. He remembered what had happened in the forest, when he and Navi were finally taking the Emerald of Life.  
  
A huge sumo-wrestler Gerudo had jumped out of the bushes, and yelled, "I like shorts! Shorts are comfy! I ALWAYS wear shorts, even in the winter! Hey! You must be the DEVIL 'cause you're not wearing shorts!!! Arrgg!!!" then she had come running at Link. He, of course, had easily stepped out of the way, and the sumo-wrestler smashed into a tree. "Heh heh! Excuse me!" she had chuckled heartedly. "I haven't had my coffee yet, today! Or my *Coco-Franklins* either, for that matter!"  
  
Link felt Marissa elbow him. "Are you gonna get it, or not?!" she demanded.  
  
"Oh! Um... yes..." he stretched out his hand, and touched it. Grasping his fingers around it, he lifted it from the stand, and pulled his hand closer. Holding it up, he began to study it. It was about the size of a baseball, maybe a little bigger. Putting it away, Link took a last glance around the chamber.  
  
'One to go...' he thought.  
  
"One to go..." Marissa said aloud.  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
"Hey... you're looking pretty *sexy* there, Ruto..." Ganondorf stood mocking her and all the others.  
  
"Shut up, you evil evil evil evil evil evil... um... evil man!" Ruto yelled. "I'm engaged, so you'll just have to find someone else to flirt with!" Then she spit in his face. He growled, and spit back at her. Then he walked closer to Nabooru. He stuck his face in her own, and was surprised by the fact that she didn't pull away.  
  
He had sealed the Chamber of Sages with dark power waves. It would prevent them from communicating with anyone but themselves. That way, they were his prisoners.  
  
"I'm sorry I have to keep you locked up with them all... if you would only agree, I would let you help me destroy Hyrule... I would make you my queen. But... unfortunately... you've been brainwashed by false legends, fake dreams, and unrealistic hope. There is none of that here. All that is here is power. You don't need anything foolish like hopes and dreams... when you have power." He laughed to himself. He pulled away from Nabooru, and left for the door.  
  
"Don't expect ME to invite you to be my brother!" Darunia yelled.  
  
Ganon spun around to look at him. His lip curled, and he grinned. "Why would anyone WANT to be your *brother*?"  
  
Without waiting for a response, Ganon left.  
  
"Someone's got an attitude problem..." Saria announced.  
  
"This is terrible... Ganon has too much power!" Impa reflected, wearily shaking her head.  
  
"All hope is not lost... there is someone trying to help at this very moment, as we speak!" Rauru said.  
  
"That's right! There's nothing to fear! My fiancé is trying to save Hyrule all by himself! He's so brave..." Ruto sighed. Everyone rolled their eyes.  
  
"She is right, however... the Hero of Time is doing a great job... he's found the Chosen One, and needs one more jewel to unlock the Eternal Diamond... I'm anticipating he'll be here, in the Sacred Realm in no time at all," said Nabooru.  
  
"But what about all the chaos? Can't we do anything to save Hyrule from that?" Saria questioned.  
  
"I don't know... the only way to stop it is to stop Ganondorf... his power is so strong it's taken over the Sacred Realm, and it's seeping out and into Hyrule..." Rauru answered. "I feel so helpless..." complained Ruto. "I think we all do, Ruto..." Nabooru spoke for everyone.  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
"Everybody sing it now! Pass the courvoisier! C'mon, yeah! Pass the courvoisier!" Navi sang happily. Here and there, Marissa was joining in and Link was becoming extremely annoyed by the two. They were retracing their steps back to Hyrule field, and now the trio was making their way through the ancient Zora city.  
  
"Navi!" Link interrupted her song.  
  
"What in the heck is it, Link?! Can't you see I'm singing!?!?" she yelled.  
  
"That's it," Link pulled out a bottle.  
  
"I mean, yes, what is it, Link?" Navi quickly corrected herself.  
  
"Where are we going next?" he asked.  
  
"Ummmm... uhhh... hmmmm... I don't know!" Navi shrugged and she went on singing. Now Link was about ready to strangle both of them.  
  
"NAVI!!" he yelled.  
  
"Death Mountain!" she blurted out.  
  
"Thank you."  
  
"I think it's another part of the volcano. One that we haven't explored yet."  
  
"Oh... how do we get into it?"  
  
"I have no idea." Navi dismissively answered. Link sighed, and they kept walking. 


	11. Run Away

A/N ~ Okay, now this is the chapter where things start getting' goooood. lol! And I still also have to apologize to a fellow author, Nyam Nyam. I'm sorry for that review... I know it was really mean. Ya see, I read her first chapter of her Zelda fic, and it was so much like mine, the first explanation that came to me was that she had copied me. She didn't! So, I'm sorry. And thank you to Kristin, or Chibi Fairy, for that review. And to everyone else who reviewed! Thank you so much. Okay, so here's chapter 11... I hope you like it! Warning... Navi madness! lol ( I also found out how to spell co-vas-ee-ay!! 'Courvoisier'!! :D )  
  
Disclaimer ~ I do not own any of the Zelda characters.  
  
Chapter XI * Run Away  
  
"Well, this is nice..." Marissa stated. It was pouring.  
  
"Look, there's a cave up ahead." Link said, pointing forward.  
  
"And...? What about it?"  
  
"We're spending the night there. In case you haven't noticed, it's pretty dark." They had taken a shortcut out of Zora's Domain, and now they were at Lake Hylia.  
  
"You've gotta be kidding. Isn't there any other place we can go?"  
  
Just then, a streak of lightning split through the sky. There was a crash of thunder. "Not unless you wanna get struck by lightning!" Link ran ahead and into the mouth of the cave. Annoyed, Marissa followed.  
  
"Since we're spending the night here, you might wanna make some form of a bed or something..." Link said. Rolling her eyes, Marissa glanced around the cave.  
  
It looked like it went pretty deep. There was a musty smell.  
  
"Disgusting..." she mumbled. Link was busy collecting sticks from the corners and niches in the cave's walls. He dropped them all into one area and equipped his fire arrows. Once he aimed and shot one at the pile of sticks, they had a small fire.  
  
Link noted Marissa was now sitting on a large flat rock away from the fire.  
  
"Aren't you cold...?" he asked. She shook her head.  
  
"Hey, Link, you know what this reminds me of?"  
  
"What Navi?" "Of that time in Kakariko Village when you had to get those Cuccos and put them back in their pen because that lady was allergic to them!!!"  
  
"Navi, that is totally irrelevant." Link replied coldly.  
  
"Link, are you PMS-ing?"  
  
"EXCUSE ME?!?!" Link gave Navi a concerned look.  
  
"Well, you're in a very bad mood! You've been like this for a long while, and... well, it's very unusual!" Navi explained.  
  
"Well I'm NOT!!!" he yelled.  
  
"Oh. Okay." She twittered around and then sat down next to Link. "I'm hungry."  
  
"What are you talking about? You told me fairies never eat! How can you be hungry?"  
  
"Oh. Well, I am."  
  
"Well, the only things I have with me are some old crackers that Malon gave me and some Lon Lon Milk."  
  
"Ew! I'll have a cracker," said Navi. "You want any?!" she asked Marissa. She shook her head. After Link gave Navi a cracker, she began flying around, munching it, and screaming, "Pass the courvoisier!"  
  
There was suddenly a loud crash of thunder. It was so loud; it seemed to shake the entire world. A flash of lightning that lit up the sky and everything else, as if it were daybreak followed the sound.  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
Zelda sighed heavily. Why did this always have to happen? It seemed like she couldn't even go a few months without being abducted by Ganon.  
  
'I was so sure I had him sealed away for all eternity, but... how could I have been so stupid?! I locked him away in a place where he could easily enter the Sacred Realm... and now... all the sages... all of Hyrule... and Link! Oh, Link... I'm so sorry I made a mess of things again...always putting you in danger... I was so foolish! And now... arrghh!' Zelda began to sob. 'Now I'm stuck inside this stupid crystal thing, inside Ganon's castle... and there's nothing I can do about it!! Unless...' Zelda gasped, and cupped her hand over her mouth. 'There's only one way to let Link gain access to the Sacred Realm! That's what I can do... after he and the chosen one get the last jewel...' Zelda smiled, pleased with herself. 'I just hope I have enough power left...'  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
"I'm going to sleep. Do you want it?" Link held out a crumpled wad of crimson material. "It's the Goron Tunic." Marissa reached over, and took it. Navi was still bouncing off the walls. She was singing, "Any time I need to see your face I just close my eyes, and I am taken to a place where your crystal mind and magenta feelings take up space in my spine, sweet like a chica-cherry cola!"  
  
"Navi, go to sleep." Link ordered, laying down the Zora Tunic under his head. He had taken off his sheathe, and laid it beside his shield against the cave wall. Navi finished her song, and then settled down next to Link.  
  
Marissa was still sitting on the rock. She got to her feet. Link didn't need her. And she was positive she didn't need him. She put the red Goron Tunic down next to Navi, and left the cave.  
  
Outside, the storm had stopped. The rain was still spattering down, but the sky was quiet and dark. Within only a few minutes, she was completely soaked. Her black hair was matted to the sides of her face and neck.  
  
'Where am I going?' she asked herself. It wasn't like she had a map of Hyrule, or anything... what if she got lost in some distant land? 'It's not that hasn't already happened...' she reminded herself. Besides, there was always the chance that she would find a way home.  
  
She walked until dawn. That was when she realized she was exhausted. Now she was in an empty field. She sat down and leaned up against a tree. Sighing, Marissa ran a hand through her damp hair. She wondered what Link was doing. He was probably still sleeping. Navi was most likely awake and running amuck. Then, she mentally slapped herself. Why was she thinking about Link? She ran away for a reason. Shaking her head, she pulled her legs up to her chin. The sun was rising. She looked around. She wanted to go back to that forest place with all the midgets. Maybe she could find a way back to her world from there.  
  
Suddenly, she spotted a tiny yellow flower. It was alone, in the huge field before her. It swayed in the cool breeze the sun brought as it rose. Although it was only a flower, it looked so lonely. All alone. It was an outcast. It didn't belong. Like her. A weed that was so different in every possible way, it couldn't even try to blend in with everything else. Suddenly, she wanted to cry, but instead she got to her feet, and kept walking. She was searching for the log-tunnel that would lead to a bridge, and even if it took forever, she was determined to find it.  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
That morning, Link awoke to a herd of clucking Cuccos, running around outside the cave. It was obviously the chicken's mating season. They were chasing after each other insanely, squawking and clucking.  
  
"Stupid Cuccos!!!" Link screamed. That woke Navi up.  
  
"Where?!" Navi sprang into flight, and began looking around wildly.  
  
"Grr..." Link snarled, and stood up. He walked to the mouth of the cave. There were at least 500 chickens on rampage. Link ran into the huge cluster, and began screaming at them all. Soon, he had scared them all away. He returned to the cave with Navi darting around.  
  
"Link! I don't believe you! This is SO awful..." she cried.  
  
"What are you shouting about?!" he demanded.  
  
"Link, I DO NOT believe you!!! This could POSSIBLY be the worst thing that could POSSIBLY happen!"  
  
"What?!"  
  
"Honestly, this throws everything off! Now it'll take longer, and Hyrule is in more danger, and we still have to find the ruby. And... and... AHHHHHHH!!!!! Link, why did you have to be so insensitive!? This is all your fault! LINK!!!"  
  
"Navi, quit over reacting! Just spit it out!"  
  
"Link, she's GONE!!! Marissa! Marissa is gone!!!!!!" Navi yelled. There was a long moment of silence.  
  
"She's... what!?" he asked bewildered.  
  
"You heard me, Link!!! She is GONE! G-O-N-E! Gone, as in not here! Gone, as in, ELSE WHERE!!!"  
  
"Oh, Nayru..." Link moaned, sitting down. He felt the faint signs of a headache coming on.  
  
"Link, what are we gonna do?!?!?! We can't save Hyrule without her! You know we can't!"  
  
"I don't know!" he shot back. "She doesn't know Hyrule like we do! She's probably lost! How are we ever gonna find her?"  
  
"I don't know, Link, but you'd better think of something FAST!!! If you don't we'll probably never find her! What if she gets herself killed?!?!"  
  
"Navi, stop being such a pessimist! That won't happen!"  
  
"Arrggg... what are we gonna do?!"  
  
"I said I don't know!!! You're the little fairy that the Great Deku Tree gave me to help out on *adventures*, but Navi, you're not doing anything!!!"  
  
"That's 'cause I didn't think she'd leave! I mean, we both know she's stubborn and would rather be doing anything but helping us! I had no idea she'd just... take off! And I bet you didn't either!"  
  
"Fine. You're right. I though she was too scared to be on her own. That's why she always followed whenever I gave her the option to stay behind! But I guess it's pretty gosh-darn obvious that I was wrong. And now she's gone and we don't have the slightest idea of where she could possibly be!!!" Link yelled.  
  
I feel so... guilty... he thought desperately. 'But why do I care so much?' Panic swept over him, strangling him as his throat became dry.  
  
"Okay, think. If you were her, where would you go?" Navi asked.  
  
"I don't know... it's not like we told her there was a certain place that she could go to get back to her own world... there's no place that she would want to go... I mean... she's probably trying to get back to her own world, right? I don't know. I just don't think she knows enough about Hyrule to want to go to a specific place, meaning she could be anywhere." Link was having some trouble finding the right words.  
  
Navi looked at him confused. "Wha...?"  
  
"I guess... what I mean is... she could be anywhere, because she doesn't understand the importance of certain places... yeah."  
  
"Oh. Um... riiiight." Navi was still confused. "Well, I think we should go look for her," she proposed.  
  
"Link's forehead was creased in thought. "I think we should go get the ruby first." He replied thoughtfully, after a moment.  
  
"Are you crazy?! We need her!" Navi shouted.  
  
"Not to get the ruby!" he reminded.  
  
"I know, but..."  
  
"And then we'll have all three jewels, and then all we have to do is find her! We'll save so much time!" Link insisted.  
  
"But what if she does find a way back to her world?! Or what if she gets killed?! Then we can kiss our hopes to save Hyrule goodbye!"  
  
"She'll be fine! Now we're going to get the Ruby of Love without her!!!" the instant the angry words flew from his mouth he regretted it. He squeezed his eyes shut, shocked at himself. Navi was too. "...Fine." she answered coldly, darting into his hat. 


	12. Insanity

A/N ~ I AM SO SORRY!!! Due to certain cruel and unusual punishment, I wasn't able to type any of the fic for... well, a pretty long time. (-_-) Thank you SOO much to all the nice people who still review my messed up stories even though I never update!!! I love you sooooo much! (I think this is starting to sound like a speech for some big award... hee hee! :P) Anywho, this chapter (which is FINALLY HERE...) is completely messed up, which you can probably tell from the title! Marissa who ran away meets up with... well, you'll find out. Don't say I didn't warn ya, it's weird. Oh and I finally bought my own OoT game!!! I beat it yesterday, and almost cried because it's so sad when Navi just... flies away like that... ::sniffle:: Okay, and ONE LAST THING. I get to co-host a website with my buddy Nyam Nyam! (^_^) It's called... DAMN! Link is HOTT!!! Hee hee! Here's the URL... www.geocites.com/triplehope87 Now it's still in the very beginning of it's creation, so there's not much to look at. Okay, sorry for this REALLY LONG author's note thing... I'm gonna can it now. :P  
  
Disclaimer ~ Nope, I don't own any of the Zelda peoples... sadly... :P  
  
Chapter XII * Insanity  
  
"Um... okay... this is just, in the least, kinda sorta a tad-bit weird..." Marissa had wandered into a deep canyon valley. After crossing a rickety old bridge, she had gone up a bunch of stairs, to find herself in a dusty village. There was a massive fortress, and three smaller shacks. Two women dressed in arabian-like clothing were standing at the entrance to the huge castle. She took a deep breath and trudged over to ask where the heck she was.  
  
"Halt!!!" one of them screamed.  
  
"Halt!!!" the other one ordered.  
  
"HALT!!!" they shouted in unison.  
  
Marissa raised an eyebrow. "Uh..." she stuttered. "W... where am..."  
  
"Silence! You have the right to remain silent! Anything you say can and WILL be held against you in the court of law!" one screamed.  
  
"Excuse me?!" Marissa was taken aback by their unwelcoming threat.  
  
"SILENCE!!!" they screeched at the top of their lungs. Each of them grabbed an arm, and yanked Marissa down a dirt path and into a cave. They tossed her into one of the three cells, made of rusting metal.  
  
"Arrgh!!" she groaned as she landed painfully. The two guards walked away.  
  
Marissa pulled herself up, and gazed around. "Eww..." she moved as far as possible away from the bleached collection of bones in the corner. She noticed an old man in the chamber across from her. The third was empty.  
  
"Why, hello there, friend!" he said in a raspy voice.  
  
"Um... hi..." Marissa said.  
  
"What's your name?"  
  
"Uhh... Marissa..."  
  
"I'm McFugi. Mr. McFugi!"  
  
"Oh... um, hi..."  
  
"I'm like, half dry, half wet over here. I saw a green toothbrush under the bed. Did you put the air conditioner on? Hey, I'm gonna turn on all the lights! Now I'm gonna turn them all off! How's about you and me have a gargling contest?!?!"  
  
Marissa gave him a twisted look of horror.  
  
"I can help you." he blurted out.  
  
"You can...?" she asked cautiously. From what she had seen so far of this guy, she didn't exactly trust him.  
  
"Yeah. I can help you get out of here." He repeated. "But there's a price... heh heh..."  
  
"Ugghh... what do you want?"  
  
"Your virginity!!!"  
  
"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! Eww, you sick pervert!! No way!!"  
  
"Fine! Suit yourself!!!" he shrugged. "But I have the knowledge you need to escape."  
  
"Can't we make a deal? That doesn't include me losing my virginity?"  
  
"Hmmm... lemme think about it. NO!!!"  
  
Marissa snarled, and sat back down against the stone wall. Suddenly, the old man began to sing. "OOOOOOOOOklahoma where the wind comes sweepin' down the plain!!! And the wavin' wheat! Can sure smell sweet! When the wind comes right behind the raaaaaiiiiinnnn!!!!!!" he was belting out. "Oh the Wells Fargo Wagon is-a... COMIN' DOWN THE STREET!!! Would ya like some Kentucky friiiied HASH?!" he asked.  
  
"No thanks."  
  
"La la la... happy toes and filangeeeeeeeeess!! Smiles for everyone!!" he cried. Marissa rolled her eyes, and sighed. This guy had obviously been locked up for so long, he had lost his mind. Either that, or gone senile. So she sat there for about an hour, waiting. For what exactly, she didn't know.  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
"Thanks, young man! I hope you have a loving, pleasure filled, enjoyable, morbid, sexy, and prooooodigious day. Please come again!!"  
  
"Uh... yeah. I sure will..." Link gave the little boy who owned the shop a dirty look.  
  
"Horny little bastard..." he muttered. He left the shop, hearing the tiny bell on the door ringing behind him. He stood in the middle of Hyrule Market. Suddenly, the woman driving a carriage full of Kentucky Fried Hash screamed, "Hey, kid! Get the hell outta the road!!!" Link spun around startled. He screamed bloody murder, and leapt out of the middle of the road. The grossly overweight woman gave him the finger, and drove off down the street.  
  
"Okkaaayy..." he sighed, and got out his ocarina. He played the Bolero of Fire, the quiet tune that warped him to the Volcano on top of Death Mountain. Once there, he quickly threw on his Goron Tunic, so he wouldn't die from heat exhaustion. Link took a deep breath, and then began to cross a long wooden board that brought him to a small island floating in the lava.  
  
"Here, Link. Use the Megaton Hammer!" Navi suggested. He took it out, and smashed the weapon into the ground. A tiny hole appeared, and he jumped down, finding himself in what appeared to be the entrance to a maze. The stone walls separating the paths were at least ten feet tall! He sighed, and walked into the opening.  
  
"AAHHH!!!" Link screamed, and pulled out his bow and arrows. After he shot down the monstrous giraffe-like creature, he made his way around it, and continued. He took turns right and left, guessing which way was the best. Soon, he came to a treasure chest, covered in moss and ivy leaves. Cautiously, he kicked it open and was rewarded with an oddly shaped key with a spiral ring at the top. "Weird..." he muttered, examining it. Link slid the bizarre key into his pocket and backtracked to a couple of paths before the chest, and started moving again.  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
"Would you PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE SHUT THE HELL UP!?!?!?" Marissa yelled.  
  
"Why are the pickles crying?!" Mr. McFugi yelled. "And why is that newspaper fuzzy?!"  
  
"Oh my God!!! You belong in a mental institution! Or a convalescent home! Or both!!!" Marissa groaned.  
  
"POP! Goes the weasel!" he shouted.  
  
"That's it. Okay. Fine. Tell me how to get outta here. I'll do whatever I have to, God!"  
  
"YEAH!!!" he began jumping up and down insanely. Rolling her eyes, Marissa said, "Great. Whatever. Just tell me already!"  
  
"Well, first of all, I'm gonna tell ya what you gotta do for me!!!"  
  
"Fine! Just hurry it up."  
  
"Okay. You will have to be my love slave for the rest of eternity!!! And you also have to marry me, and we have to go on our honeymoon to the Christmas Tree Shop!!! And we'll buy a house in Kakariko Village, and we'll have lots and lots of BABIES!!! And we'll raise chickens, and when we both die, we'll be cremated, and buried side by side in the graveyard, where we can lie together... forever!!!" he sighed dreamily.  
  
"Yes, yes, I agree! Whatever! Just tell me how to get outta here!"  
  
"Alrighty. Well, inside one of those pots over there... is a key!"  
  
Marissa leaned over, and reached inside one of the clay pots inside her cell. She felt a key. She growled, feeling very stupid that she hadn't checked to see what was in the pots to begin with.  
  
"Now, come unlock my cage!" Mr. McFugi said.  
  
"How the hell am I supposed to unlock your cage, when I can't even get out of mine?!"  
  
"Oh, what a silly goose! You're not even locked in there!"  
  
There was a long moment of silence.  
  
"You mean... you mean this cell isn't even LOCKED?!?!" Marissa screamed.  
  
"Nope."  
  
"OH MY GOD!!!" She shouted. Leaping to her feet, she threw herself into the bared doorway. It swung open immediately.  
  
"See? Now you can unlock me, and we can begin our life together!"  
  
"Excuse me?!" Marissa laughed, holding up the key from the pot. "No, you can stay here!" she put the key into her pocket.  
  
"But you promised! What about your tiny little house and all our children!? What about us?!?!"  
  
"There is no 'us' 'cause I'm leavin' right now! See ya!" she laughed, walking out of the cave.  
  
"NNNOOOOOOOOO!!!!! Come baaackk!!!!!" he screamed. She ignored him and gazed around.  
  
It was dark out. The two guards that had put her in the cell earlier weren't around. Thank God... she thought. Deciding this wasn't the best place to be, she decided to find the way she came in. She soon found herself in a windy barren desert. 


	13. The Bird People

A/N ~ Wheee, another weird chapter... the bird people. Kinda makes you wanna read it, HUH? Lol! Well, I hope so... (^_^) Anywhos, please read n' review... thanks so much to those who are reviewing... and reading... Yay! Alrighty, I'm a li'l hyped up right now. Oh, Tadashi gets introduced in this chapter! Now, she's a girl, but after some research, I discovered Tadashi is a male Japanese name. So... oh well! I don't wanna change it. :P Okay, I guess that's it... so... enjoy! (^. O)  
  
Disclaimer ~ Unfortunately, I don't own any of the Zelda peoples. But if I did... mwwa aha ha ahhahahah hhahaha!!!!!!!  
  
Chapter XIII * The Bird People  
  
Link was getting pretty sick of walking through the stupid maze, and Navi had decided she was going to lead a sing a long. She kept singing strange songs, like 'Who Let the Dogs Out'. Perhaps the most annoying part of this was that she had changed the lyrics to 'Who Let the Fairies Out'.  
  
But Link was getting fed up with both Navi, and the maze. He had been back and forth through the same passages about sixteen million times, and he couldn't find the door the key was for. That is... if it even was for a door. It would certainly be convenient if the key happened to be for the chest the ruby was inside of.  
  
Link suddenly grabbed Navi and told her to fly up to get a good view of the maze.  
  
"Okay!!!!!" she readily agreed, twirling up into the air. When she had come back down, she reported that if he took a few turns right, he should come to an exit.  
  
So, Link took those few turns right. And he did come to a small tunnel. He curiously strutted in, quickly noticing the rotten smell.  
  
"Eww, Link! What did you do?!" Navi giggled. Link's crystal blue eyes rolled upward as he glanced around. He noticed the huge boulder a few feet away. "Hopefully, this'll lead somewhere..." he whispered. He pulled out the heavy Megaton Hammer, and with two thrusts, the reddish mass of rock was smashed to pieces. Link grinned, when he saw the entrance to a chamber beyond.  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
Marissa was about ready to cry. She had been wandering aimlessly through the desert for quite sometime, and had searched and searched, but still couldn't find the way out. Obviously, it wasn't the exit she had been hoping for. She continued through the barren wasteland, searching for some sign of life... or anything else for that matter. She was tired, and hungry. But what was eating at her the most was the fact that she had run away. If she had just stayed with Link, she wouldn't be lost in a desert! Yes, she defiantly regretted it, even if she couldn't fully admit it.  
  
Suddenly, she spotted a small stone building. Through all the sand that was blowing wildly, she could just barely make it out. Praying it wasn't a mirage, she began sprinting towards it. When she reached the door to the circular building, she yanked it open, and threw herself inside.  
  
Immediately, she realized it was warm, and no sand was being tossed about by the cruel wind that was outside.  
  
"Thank God..." she desperately laid down on the floor, gasping harshly for air. She had no idea how long she laid there for, but it seemed like a couple minutes. It could have been longer, since she was used to a different time, she didn't exactly know.  
  
When she finally got up, she took the time to look around the room. She saw a table, and two pots on each side. Does someone live here? She wondered. Stepping over to the table, she began to wonder how she'd ever get out of this nightmare. She sat down on the edge of the wooden table, and closed her eyes. If there was only a way she could get out... she could get back to Link who knew this strange land like the back of his hand. Alone, it was so uncertain, and dangerous. But with Link leading the way... No. She didn't need him. She would just stay here for a while, and then go out to the desert again. She was fine... alone. Without really knowing it, she fell asleep, lying sideways on the table, her head resting on her arm.  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
"Oh Goddesses..." Link looked around. He was in a chamber with a bridge that led to a huge platform surrounded by a lava-filled moat. He wiped the beads of perspiration off his forehead, and stepped onto the bridge. There, he saw two shacks made of rocks with various piles all around. Navi came out of Link's hat.  
  
"Link... where are we?" she questioned.  
  
"I have no idea... maybe Hyrule isn't such a small world, after all..." he replied, gazing into one of the boarded-up windows. Through a tiny crack, he could see a light inside. Suddenly, the door flew open. Out came the strangest looking creature Link had ever laid eyes on.  
  
"Ahhhhhhhh!!! It's a monster!!!! We're all gonna die!!!!" Navi screamed.  
  
"SHHHHH!!!!" Link hushed. The *thing* glided closer to them. It looked just like a regular Hylian, except with huge wings sprouting from it's back. It had other mutations too, such as its beak. It had no nose, or mouth. Just a long and pointy beak.  
  
"Hello." Said the creature.  
  
"Hi..." Link responded, confused.  
  
"Who are you?" it asked.  
  
"I'm Link... and this is Navi.  
  
"I am Tadashi."  
  
"Um... what... uh... race are you...?" Link asked, knowing how rude it sounded.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry!" it began. "I was... distracted by you. I've never seen one of your kind either." it looked at him curiously. Tadashi was wearing what looked like a Japanese Kimono. It was black, with a charcoal tie around the creature's waist.  
  
"I'll explain. I am... we are... a 'lost' city. We are the ancient Kyphoriens. (Ki- FOR-e-ins) In our native tongue, that translates to 'bird people'. As I'm sure you have noticed, I have wings, and a beak. I'm a Kyphorien. If you really need to know, I'm a descendant of the king." Tadashi explained. Link nodded. "I'm Hylian. I'm on a quest to save Hyrule from a great evil."  
  
"Ahh. I have a feeling you're not here to see the sights, then." Link decided Tadashi was a young girl from the sound of her voice.  
  
"Yes. I'm here looking for a red jewel. It's very important. If you know anything about it, it's essential you tell me."  
  
"Heh, keep your tunic on... I may be able to help you." she laughed. Then her expression became serious again. Folding her arms, she began. "There is a dragon... a horrible fiery dragon. It has been coming into our small town and luring everyone to its lair with some type of brainwashing skill... it's like the dragon possesses them... as you can see, houses have been torn down, thanks to that beast. More than three fourths of our population has been wiped out! Now, you're probably wondering what this has to do with you. You see, Lavalgia, the dragon, has captured our king's spirit. Since he's my great great grandfather, I know he had possession of a fire rock... or in your words, a red jewel. Its power has helped out people in the past, but it's useless against the dragon. I'm sure he'll give it to you if you help our people." Tadashi said. Link paused before he agreed. Lavalgia?  
  
"Volvagia..." he muttered. That was the dragon that had been revived by Ganondorf after a Goron with the Megaton Hammer had killed it... he had been the last to destroy that dragon. Who was Lavalgia?  
  
"Volvagia!!!" Tadashi cried. Her eyes widened and filled with sadness. "It is a legend... a very old one, at that. She and Lavalgia were Death Mountain's Guardians... the two dragons. Some even say they were ancient sages, like the owl, Kaepora Gaebora... but one day, something happened... an evil took over... Volvagia began eating the Goron race at the other end of the volcano! We feared our race would be next... but one of the Gorons destroyed her with a legendary hammer..." she paused. "That is what has been told. And just a while ago, she was brought back to life, but killed again by a hero..." she said. "And Lavalgia... she is on our side of the volcano. She has become evil, too... just like her sister." She finished. There was a minute of silence, before Link proceeded. "Where's the dragon?" he asked.  
  
"Oh, thank you!!! Please... I'll be right back!" she dashed inside the rock house. A few moments later she returned, this time, followed by a few more Kyphoriens. Link noticed the different markings on their beaks... different from Tadashi's. She had a long green streak going down hers. He wondered what the significance was.  
  
"They say 'thank you'," she reported. "Let's go. I'll show you the way."  
  
  
  
A/N ~ Wheeee again! Finally done! Now I'm headed to our (stupid) apartment's *community pool*! :P Well, thanks for reading, and please review! (^. O) luv ya all! 


	14. Into Lavalgia's Lair

A/N ~ Chapter 14 is here! There's some weird things in this chapter... weird things pop up... they fall into a hole... there's mention of pokemon a lot in here... lol! It's weird. Oh, and when Link stops yelling right before he hits the bottom... you know in OoT, when he falls down REALLY REALLY far...? (In the Fire Temple for instance...) and he stops screaming even before he hits the ground? Yeah, that's what it means. Lol. Oh, and the great fairies... they don't laugh. They scream. Right? Like I said. It's weird. Please R/R!! Thankies! (^. O)  
  
Disclaimer ~ I do not own the Zelda characters (except for Tadashi, and the rest of the Kyphoriens!) or anything that has to do with pokemon, or the song 'Hot in Herre', or anything else that appears in this chapter that belongs to someone else. :P  
  
  
  
Chapter XIV * Into Lavalgia's Lair  
  
"What's up with all the marks on your beaks?" Navi asked Tadashi.  
  
She giggled, and said, "Well, each of us has a different marking. Mine means faith. That's what 'tadashi' means in our language."  
  
"Ooooohhhhh, I wonder if my name means anything!" Navi sighed.  
  
"Well, according to our language, 'navi' means fried toothbrush." Tadashi chuckled.  
  
"Oh!" Navi gasped, disturbed.  
  
"Your name, Link... means enlightened."  
  
"Oh. Well, at least it's not *fried toothbrush*!" he laughed at Navi.  
  
The three continued down the passageway. The walls were ice cold, while the air was humid, and hard to breathe. Suddenly, a strange looking yellow mouse thing ran by.  
  
"Hey! It's a Pikachu! YOU'RE MINE!!!" Navi screamed, throwing a Pokeball. She caught the little mouse, and put it away. "I'm gonna be a Pokemon master!"  
  
"Uh, whatever. Just be quiet, okay?" Link sighed.  
  
"It's getting' hot in here... so take off all your clothes... I am... gettin' so hot... I wan' take my cloooothes off!!" Navi sang.  
  
"Your fairy is, uh... weird." Tadashi commented.  
  
"I know." Link sighed again.  
  
"So take it off like you're home alone! Dancin' in front of the mirror while you're on the phone! Checkin' you're reflection and tellin' your best friend, 'like-" "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!" They all suddenly screamed, falling downward. Well, actually, only Link did. Tadashi and Navi were hovering over the hole still.  
  
"AAHHHRRRAAAGGGGHHHH!!!!" Link stopped yelling right before he hit the bottom.  
  
"Hmm, I wonder who put this hole here...?" Tadashi said from above. Suddenly, Link heard strange high-pitched screaming.  
  
"AHH HAA HAA HAAA HAA HAA HAAAA!!!!!"  
  
"MOMMY!!!!!" Navi shrieked. She darted downward, and stopped next to Link. In front of them was a great fairy! But it wasn't just any great fairy... it was Navi's mommy!  
  
"Ohh, Navi! C'mere and give your momma a biiiiigg hug!!!" she said, while Navi flew up to her happily. By now, Tadashi had flown down into the pit too.  
  
"Momma, how'd you get here?! I always thought you lived behind the Great Deku Tree!" Navi said.  
  
"I know, I know, sweetie... actually, it's pretty funny!" she giggled. "Ya see, I was walking to Food Mart for some cocktail peanuts, and I sorta fell into this here hole and then these two odd-looking people asked me if I had any... uh... what was it again...? Oh! Po-key-MAN! And I told them I didn't know what Po-ke-MANS were, and then their weird talking cat told me to shut it! And they never even came back to help me outta this hole!" she sighed. "Anywho... so what's up? New adventure, I presume?"  
  
Link nodded. "We have one last jewel to collect, which will unlock the Eternal Diamond and open the Sacred Realm!"  
  
"Good! Then I can do something to help!" she began to laugh hysterically again. Then she presented Link with a small white sphere frozen in a glass crystal. "It's called Varo's Ice! It may not be as powerful as the other great fairies' spells, but it should help." Smiling, Link nodded, and accepted the gift.  
  
"And Navi... I need to talk to you alone!"  
  
"Okay!" Navi flew over to her mother, while Tadashi created an aura of light around herself and Link, lifting them both upward.  
  
When they were back up in the tunnel, Link stepped back to lean against the wall. Tadashi wasn't saying anything, so he let his mind wander... about Lavalgia... Ganon... the diamond... Zelda... and Marissa.  
  
He wished he knew where she was. And he wondered if she was okay... "Watcha thinkin' about?!" Tadashi suddenly asked.  
  
"Oh!" Link was torn from his meditation. "Uh... nothing too interesting..." he replied nervously.  
  
"I bet you were thinkin' about a girl!" she giggled. Link looked slightly flushed, and a look of embarrassment was on his face. He didn't respond.  
  
"Yup. I was right... I am *so* good! You know how I could tell...?" she moved closer to Link in a flirtatious manner. He looked at her nervously.  
  
"Your eyes." She whispered. "They were so calm... and quiet... yet distant from the world..." Tadashi continued.  
  
"Are you trying to seduce me?!" Link blurted out. She blushed, and smiled.  
  
"No! I was just joking..." she answered, a bit embarrassed.  
  
"Oh." Now he felt bad. He'd have to stop being like this... not thinking before he spoke... he tried to apologize to the Kyphorien, but couldn't force the words from his mouth.  
  
Navi was right. He had been in a bad mood ever since Ganon had taken over the Sacred Realm for the umpteenth time. Although it wasn't that he was angry... 'I wish it could stay like this forever... I could care less if I don't get to live those seven years!' he thought to himself. 'But Zelda is insisting on sending me back...' He remembered when he had begged her to let him stay as an adult... just for a few months. But he knew eventually, he'd have to surrender the master sword to the Temple of Time, and go back to being that lonely ten year old without a fairy...  
  
He guessed it had been pretty obvious that Zelda was going to take back the Ocarina of Time right after she was rescued, and send him back. Then he would have to live with the Kokiris, back in that forest with no in-ground plumbing! Saria wouldn't be around, because she was now the Sage of Forest... and Zelda would be younger too, but she'd be learning to rule the land. All he'd have left would be Epona and Malon... and there was no guarantee that he'd be able to see them often. That Deku Sprout thing might decide to make the entrance to Hyrule Field off limits to everyone. And then there was that annoying Mido...  
  
But when he did grow up, he'd have to leave the forest. He was Hylian, not Kokiri. Then what? What would happen next?  
  
Would he marry Zelda?!  
  
He had no idea what was going on with that... sometimes he wished he wasn't the Hero of Time. Or even a hero, period.  
  
He had his own life too... if you could call it that. His own problems to deal with, never mind Hyrule's fate as well!  
  
And Zelda... always getting kidnapped... 'I swear, this time around, he's really going to pay!!' Link's hands were clenching into fists.  
  
"Link, are you okay?" Navi asked.  
  
"Oh. Um, yeah." He saw Navi bobbing up and down in front of his face.  
  
"Let's go!" Tadashi called, already ahead of them.  
  
"What did your mom say?" Link questioned.  
  
"She taught me a new super cool power!!! Now I have fairy magic too!" she excitedly twittered around. "Wanna see?!"  
  
"Sure."  
  
"Okay!" Navi began spinning in a circular motion, sparkles spraying everywhere. She went faster and faster, until she was just a blur of pale blue. Suddenly, a huge wave of light burst from the center, and a huge cake appeared with the writing, "Happy St. Joseph's Day, Shirley!" scrolled on it in pink and yellow icing.  
  
"Uh oh!!" Navi immediately stopped, and began giggling. "Hee hee hee!!! That wasn't supposed to happen..."  
  
"I certainly HOPE not..." Tadashi laughed too. But Link didn't join in. again, he was lost in his thoughts, and there was no hope of finding him anytime soon.  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
"Finally!" Navi cried.  
  
"Hey, Link! Pay attention! We're here!"  
  
"Oh, okay."  
  
"The dragon lives right inside. I'll wait here, okay? That way I can see the king's spirit when you free him." Tadashi said, while Link nodded.  
  
"Let's go," he said to Navi, walking into a much lower passage, with his fairy following behind. 


	15. Faires and Dragons

A/N ~Yay, chappy number 15 is up! Ya know, after typing this, I realized this isn't such a great title. Oh well. (lol) We'll pretend the mentioning of fairies was Navi's mom in the last chapter, kay..? lol! (^_^)() Hmm... There's also a bit of violence in this one... nothing really that bad though. If I can take it, you can. Lol! And I wasn't exactly sure what to call Link's... tights... leggings... things...? So... yeah. (-_-)() Anywho, please r + r! Thanks a bunch!  
  
Disclaimer ~ No, I don't own any of the Zelda characters.  
  
Chapter XV * Fairies and Dragons  
  
"Aren't you excited, Link?!" Navi asked.  
  
"About what...?" he questioned absentmindedly.  
  
"About getting the Eternal Diamond! And goin' into the Sacred Realm and kickin' some BOOTY!!!"  
  
"Oi vay..." Link sighed. The passage was finally nearing its end, and beyond it, they could see a room filled with haze. They approached the end. When they exited the tunnel and stood in the new chamber, Link shivered.  
  
"There's a great presence here..." Navi reported. The chamber was circular in shape, and a small pool of oozing lava was in the center of the ceiling.  
  
"Hmm... a little odd..." Navi stated. Suddenly, the room rumbled. Link unsheathed the Master Sword, preparing for a fight. From above, there was a loud growl, and the pool of magna was broken open. First emerged the head. Two beady red eyes glared at Link. More of the scale-coated body fell through the lava-portal. It just kept coming and coming. The dragon must have been a mile long! Coiling itself around the edges of the room, finally the tail fell downward, revealing five razor spikes protruding from the abrasive skin.  
  
"Let's do this, Link! I can tell its tail is it's weak point!" Navi exclaimed, darting over to the tail that was already spinning and flailing about.  
  
Link raised his shield, and ran to the chamber's middle, where the monster's head and tail were bobbing around.  
  
"Heeeeeeeeyyyyaaaaaahhh!!!" he swung the blade at the tail, completely missing. The dragon lifted its tail up, and slammed it into the ground. Link lost his balance, and fell. The huge head loomed over him, then swooped down. Link felt every inch of his body tense up. The dragon lowered its head even more. Now they were only about a foot apart. Lavalgia hissed and stretched her mouth open, revealing rows and rows of fangs. Link held his breath so he wouldn't have to inhale the sickening aroma lurking inside the beast's mouth. With another growl, Lavalgia raised her head, and hissed. Link leapt up, and dashed towards the tail. He concentrated the magic energy into the sword, charging it up. Unleashing the spin attack, he created a huge gnash in the rough skin, just as Lavalgia threw her tail up into the air. She let out a hiss of rage, and started after Link, her jaws snapping.  
  
"Quick, Link! Hit her face! HIT HER FACE!!!" Navi ordered. Once again, the dragon had Link pinned down. He was grasping his sword. As Lavalgia continued to snap her jaws, he flipped it around so the blade was facing up. Then, gripping the handle with both hands, he raised his arms up in the air and with all his might, shoved the sword into fiery dragon's gaping mouth. It slid down her throat and she yanked her head up, screaming in pain.  
  
Now, it was very good that Link had decided to attack Lavalgia in this way, because the injury clearly had inflicted a lot of damage. There was one flaw, however. Link was still holding onto the handle of the sword that was stuck down her throat. She thrashed around wildly, trying to get the sword out, which was making Link rather sick. He was really high up, and could see Navi's blue light down below. He was tossed back and forth, up and down. His body was limp, and he couldn't control his limbs any longer. He was like Volvagia's puppet. But he couldn't let go of the sword. If he did, the blade was at risk! What if Lavalgia swallowed it?! The monster got more and more violent, when she discovered she couldn't get the sword out. Link tried with all the strength he had left to twist the sword and tear it out. It wasn't working.  
  
"LINK!!! THE TAIL!!!" Navi screamed at him. "THROW A BOMB OR SOMETHING AT THE TAIL!!!"  
  
The monster's head flailing in every direction, Link released his right hand's grip on the handle. He decided it would be best to use the hookshot and not a bomb, since that would require too much timing that he didn't have the concentration for. He pulled it out, quickly aimed, and fired. The sharp point at the end of the chain shot straight through the rough scales, through the flesh, and back out and into the ground. The dragon threw her head up, roaring and snarling.  
  
Now she was even angrier. The fact that she was pinned down didn't do much good, either. Since her body was so long, she could move around just as easily as before. She kept thrashing until Link was finally able to rip the sword from her throat.  
  
He went hurtling down, and landed hard on his back. He screamed, and lost control of the sword. It landed somewhere over yonder. Link tried to jump up, but his back hurt too much. Instead he rolled over, and cautiously got to a standing position.  
  
"Watch out!!!" Navi shrieked. The dragon dove down, flames shooting from her mouth. Link reached for his shield, only to find that it had been lost as well during the struggle with the blade down Lavalgia's throat.  
  
He resorted to leaping out of the way, narrowly missing her snout ramming into his body, then being engulfed by flames.  
  
He thought quickly, and took out his bow and arrows. He used his fairy magic to equip them with ice power, and prepared to fire the first one. He aimed for just below her throat, hoping to hit some important internal organ... one that would be helpful in taking her out.  
  
He shot. Miss. She was moving too quickly. There was no way he would be able to hit her. He shot again. Second miss. He needed to slow her down. Another shot. He was running low on arrows, and all he was doing was wasting them. Fourth shot. This one collided into her forehead. She slowed down. The cry, bellowed, shook the huge chamber. The blue light flared out from the arrow, and Link shot the second-to-last arrow he had. It flew into her flesh, right above her short stubby arms. Shocked at his accuracy, he smiled and whispered triumphantly, "Yes!!" He charged the Master Sword, and ran to Lavalgia who had collapsed to the ground, screaming and growling in fits of violence. After three spin attacks, Link trusted the blade into the monster's chest, and with a last cry of anger, she snarled and fell to the grown, a thick crimson blood oozing out all over.  
  
Link waited a few moments before he went to yank out the sword that rested vertically half inside the dragon.  
  
After pulling it out, he looked down at himself. His leg was gnashed open, blood leaking down his leg, staining his leggings a deep red. It didn't hurt. He decided the pain hadn't sunk in yet. He saw his arms were bleeding too, but the cuts weren't nearly as deep. His back still hurt... probably a sprained muscle. He took a deep breath, and moved towards the opening back into the passage, when Tadashi came running out, beaming.  
  
She embraced him in a bear hug, but quickly let go when Link cried out. He wrapped his arms around his now-heaving chest. He gasped for air. Had he broken a rib or something?  
  
"Oh, Link! Are you okay?! I'm sorry! It's just that I saw your battle with that monster... you were so brave! You saved us! Link, you really are a hero!" she blurted out. He moaned and said, "No problem..." he noticed how hard it had become to breathe.  
  
"You have wounds... many of them. Don't worry. I'll heal you after." Tadashi smiled. Suddenly, the two saw the sphere of light that was drifting down from high above. Inside, was another Kyphorien...  
  
"Your majesty!" Tadashi exclaimed, as the elder Kyphorien smiled at them.  
  
"Link... if I may call you by name..." he began. "You saved this dying race. You killed the dragon, Lavalgia. You're so brave, the only thing you could possibly be is a hero. Thank you. For doing such a miraculous deed, you shall not go unrewarded."  
  
There was a brilliant glowing, and floating before them was a red crystal with a heart symbol on it, orbed in a white light.  
  
"Take our sacred red fire stone... or as you call it, the Ruby of Love."  
  
Link reached for it, and it drifted towards him. Soon the ruby rested in his gloved hand. He smiled. "Thank you."  
  
He nodded. "I must go now. Tadashi, you did well doing what you could for the town. I thank you both." With that, the light vanished, along with the Kyphorien's guardian.  
  
"Come, Link. I'll heal your wounds." Tadashi looked at him. They walked out of the chamber Lavalgia had once prowled in, and back through the tunnel that lead them once again, into the Kyphorien village. 


	16. Visit From Zelda

A/N ~ Ah, a chapter of explanation... this explains a bunch of crap about the eternal diamond and what role Marissa plays in unlocking it and opening the entrance to a Sacred Realm. I've boosted up the rating to PG-13 because this is where things start getting weird between Link and Marissa... mwaa haa haa!! But I'm not going to give anything away. So THERE. Hee hee... okay, well, please R+R!! Thanks sooo much! (^_^)  
  
Disclaimer ~ Nope, sorry.  
  
Chapter XVI * Visit From Zelda  
  
"Marissa..." called a soft voice. "Marissa..."  
  
Her eyes shot open. She sat up, and looked around. Remembering where she was, she sunk into disappointment.  
  
"Marissa..."  
  
There! She heard it again. That's what had woken her up...  
  
She realized she had been lying on the table, sleeping. For how long, she didn't know.  
  
"Marissa..."  
  
She looked ahead, finally noticing the pink rose-colored light. There was a girl standing there.  
  
"What the hell...?" Marissa whispered. She wasn't fully awake yet. "Oh! Oh, I'm so sorry! You must live here! I was lost in the desert, and I was so tired, I came here to rest, and... and... please-"  
  
"Marissa, don't worry."  
  
"How... you know my name...?"  
  
"Don't worry, I don't live here. I have something important to tell you."  
  
"You do...?"  
  
"Yes. You see... I am Princess Zelda. Link has told you about me."  
  
"But... I thought you were locked up in that sacred place with that crazy Ganondorf guy...?"  
  
"I am. I'm talking to you telepathically. Here, touch my hand." Marissa reach out to touch the delicate gloved hand, but hers went right through.  
  
"If Ganondorf catches me doing this, he really won't be happy... but it's important that you listen to what I have to say."  
  
Marissa nodded.  
  
"Link now has all three jewels... the Emerald of Life... the Sapphire of Hope... and the Ruby of Love. Life, hope, and love. Alone, these cannot unlock the legendary Diamond of Eternity. The chosen one must play the song to break the seal... Marissa, Link didn't lie when he told you he didn't know your part in all of this. I do. You... you, Marissa, are the only one who can unlock the Eternal Diamond. You are the chosen one.  
  
"I... I am...?"  
  
"Yes. You must play the Song of Eternity on the Ocarina of Time... the ocarina Link has. I cannot even teach it to you, because I don't know it. Only one person does... and that is you. You know... because it's part of your destiny."  
  
"It... is...?"  
  
Zelda nodded. "You must go to the Temple of Time... It'll be best to open the portal to the Sacred Realm there. I think that's everything you need to know. I'll bring you back to where Link is, now." she smiled.  
  
'She sure isn't the slut I though she'd be...' Marissa noted. '... And she's beautiful...' she suddenly pictured Link with the princess, and felt a stab of jealousy.  
  
"Come, Marissa..." Zelda beckoned. She slid off the table, and moved over to Zelda. Face to face, she was a little taller than Marissa.  
  
He was seventeen... she was sixteen... Marissa wondered how old Zelda was.  
  
They were enveloped in a white light, and soon Marissa couldn't see anything. Not even Zelda.  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
"Aaaggrrhhhh..." Link groaned, as Tadashi covered the deep cut on his leg with an amber-colored liquid. It stung like hell. He gritted his teeth and squeezed his eyes shut.  
  
"I know it hurts... and as for those ribs... drink this. They should be better in about two days. It's my miracle-worker-medicine!" she grinned, handing him a small pewter cup containing a thick black substance.  
  
"Ugh... I don't even wanna know what's in this..." he quickly gulped it down. The bitter aftertaste lingered in the back of his throat.  
  
"Hmm... I'd better get some more bandages and soap. I have a bad feeling this one might get infected..." she said, looking at the gnash on his leg, and then walking out.  
  
Link sighed. He was sitting in a bed with thin sheets, and lots of pillows. Tadashi had forced him to take off every piece of clothing and equipment he had been sporting, so she could check him over, and make sure he didn't have any more wounds. He had put up a good fight, but had obviously lost. Now he was lying there with nothing but a blanket. Navi flew around his hat that he had carelessly tossed onto a nearby nightstand. She said, "How are you feeling?"  
  
"Awful... inside and out..." he mumbled.  
  
Out of the blue, there was suddenly a flash and a blood-curdling scream. "AAAHHHHRRRHHHGGGG!!!" there was a loud thud. "DAAAAMNIT! MY ASS! I think it's broken!!!" moaned a familiar voice.  
  
Navi jumped up, and Link's eyes widened.  
  
Marissa got to her feet.  
  
"Marissa?!?!" Link yelled.  
  
"Yay! We're so glad you're back!" Navi bounced around happily.  
  
"Uh... nice outfit, Link..." she glanced at him, slightly grinning. He turned six shades of red.  
  
Suddenly, Tadashi swung open the door, and burst in.  
  
"EXCUSE me, miss! You're not allowed in here!" she grabbed Marissa's shoulder.  
  
"Don't touch me! And I think I'll decide where I'm allowed to be, thank you very much!"  
  
Tadashi growled and spread out her wings.  
  
"Tadashi, it's okay. She's a friend." Link quickly explained. Tadashi looked at him, then back to Marissa who now had a mocking smirk on her face.  
  
Then, the rose-colored light appeared. Tadashi and Navi both starred. Link knew who the young girl was.  
  
"Princess...?" he asked cautiously, sitting bolt upright.  
  
"Link!"  
  
He almost leapt from the bed to hug her, but held himself back because of his lack of clothing.  
  
"It's not really me. I'm doing this telepathically. You were right... We've found the chosen one. Go to the Temple of Time after you heal up... Marissa knows what to do." Zelda quickly filled in him. "I'm sorry I cannot heal you myself... but not only will Ganondorf discover that I'm communicating with you, but the magic can't travel telepathically."  
  
"Zelda..." Link looked at her. "Are you okay there?"  
  
"Don't worry about me. Just rest, you'll need your strength. Take care, Link." She turned to Marissa. "You too." She added. "I'll see you all in the Sacred Realm." Zelda smiled. They watched as her radiant grin twist into a look of horror. Suddenly, Ganondorf appeared in her place.  
  
"Heh heh heh. That's right. Rest up, Link. You're going to need all the energy you can get... although it won't do you any good. You're no match for me." He chucked. With that, he vanished.  
  
"Was... was that Princess Zelda, and Ganondorf?!?!?!" Tadashi asked, stunned.  
  
Link nodded.  
  
"I hope she's okay, I didn't like the way that beast pushed her out of the way like that..." Tadashi commented.  
  
Marissa looked at the Kyphorien. A half bird, half Hylian creature with big wings, and a huge beak that stretched from her face, down to her stomach.  
  
"Who are you?" she asked.  
  
"I'm Tadashi."  
  
Marissa nodded, and went to sit down on the rock in the corner that served at a seat.  
  
"Are you thirsty, Link? Hungry perhaps?" Tadashi asked him.  
  
"No," came his reply.  
  
"Well, I've got the bandages, so I'll wrap up the cut on your leg." She pulled up and extra chair, and began tending to the wound.  
  
Link winced as she touched the sterile white cloth to his torn raw flesh. It stung, but felt numb at the same time. Whatever she had put on it after scrubbing it clean had not only soothed it, but it feel more relaxed too. He breathed deeply, beginning to relax.  
  
He watched Navi move closer to Marissa. 'Stupid fairy...' he thought. 'Probably gonna ask her why she ran away...'  
  
Navi didn't speak, however. She drifted high in the air above Marissa, but said nothing. Link was thankful for that. 


	17. Angered Flames

A/N ~ Oh boy! Okay, this is one of the good chapters! Twist in the story here! Heh heh... lol! I'm sure most of you could see something like this coming, so here it is... oh I'm so excited!!! mwwaa ha haaa!!!! Oh, and now it's Marissa turn to have some clothing issues... it made more sense when I first wrote it, but now it just seems kinda weird. Oh well. please R\R! thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (^. O)  
  
Disclaimer ~ I own all the Zelda characters and they're my slaves, and they have to bake cookies for me everyday or else they get no dinner. ::laughs at the thought of Link baking cookies:: I'm just kidding.  
  
Chapter XVII * Angered Flames  
  
"Are you okay? What happened, anyway?" Marissa finally asked. Tadashi had left the room, and had told Link that he could leave whenever. She had offered the two a place to sleep that night and they had accepted.  
  
"I was fighting a dragon... Lavalgia... she was holding the town's king's spirit hostage, and she's the one who had the Ruby of Love." He answered, a little shocked that she even cared about what had happened to him.  
  
"Oh... it looks like you got a nasty cut on your leg..." she eyed the bandages, not knowing what else to say.  
  
"Yeah, but it doesn't hurt. Whatever Tadashi put on it works miracles!" he laughed. "So... where did you go after you left?" he hesitated.  
  
"Well, some weird Arabian people locked me up... this psychopathic old man drove me crazy... I got out and then got lost in a desert... I saw a building, went inside, fell asleep, and Zelda woke me up." She said. Link laughed. He was about to say something else, but Tadashi walked in.  
  
"You're room is ready, sir!" she giggled and said, "I'm just kidding... it's a guest house. It used to be our village's hotel but that awful dragon destroyed half of it and.... well, don't worry. It looks real nice; we fixed it up for you!"  
  
"Thanks, Tadashi." Link said.  
  
"It's getting late... do you want to go there now?"  
  
"Um... sure, I guess." He answered, while Marissa nodded. He seriously wondered what had her in such a good mood. Maybe she was being nice since she had run away... "Alrighty, then. We'll leave you to put some clothes on. Oh, and there's air conditioning at the room you'll be in, so it'll be more comfortable." Tadashi added. She and Marissa left.  
  
They stood outside the room in the corridor. Neither of them said a word as they leaned against the wall. It was silent. Link was taking forever to change. Finally, Tadashi spoke.  
  
"You like him, don't ya?"  
  
"WHAT?!?!" Marissa was taken aback.  
  
"You. Him. You like him." she said again.  
  
"No way!!" Marissa shook her head.  
  
"You're pretty convincing..." Tadashi began. "But I've seen the way you act around him. You try to be arrogant... but sometimes you let your guard down, and he can see the real girl inside of you."  
  
Marissa had an eyebrow raised. What was Tadashi even talking about...?  
  
The door opened. Link came out wearing a clean green tunic, and unstained leggings.  
  
"C'mon, Tadashi. I'm ready." he said. Even Link seemed happier. He flashed the two girls a smile, and they returned it.  
  
Tadashi led them from the small house they were in, to another small building. Inside, it wasn't very big, but there were two cots and blankets, and it was much cooler than the temperature of the houses, which were the hot volcano temperature. There was a small door in the back that led to a tiny bathroom. There was also a fireplace in front of the cots. Link lit a fire to make it more comfortable, plus it was really dark and they needed the light. They lit candles in the bathroom, and Tadashi left, saying she'd be back in the morning.  
  
"I'm going to wash my clothes and take a shower." Marissa told Link. He said okay and she entered the bathroom. She stripped her clothes and ran them under cold water. That's when she realized she'd have nothing to wear to bed. She got under the shower and decided she would dry her bra and underwear near a candle and just wear that.  
  
The cool water felt great, pounding down in sheets against her back, and she washed quickly.  
  
Outside, Link sat on his cot. He had taken off his sword and shield and put them on the floor along with his pack of other items. He kept wondering why Marissa was acting to different. He admitted he was being nice since she had run away... but what was she trying to pull? This act wasn't going to fool him.  
  
"Link...?" Marissa head popped out from a crack in the door.  
  
"What?" he looked at her.  
  
"Uh..." he face went red. "Could you like... close your eyes for a second...?"  
  
"Um... okay..." he curiously agreed.  
  
"Thanks." She ran out of the bathroom in her *undergarments* and crawled under the covers. They felt so soft and cool against her bare skin. Although there were only two sheets, she felt comfortable and secure enough to fall asleep right then and there.  
  
"Okay, open." She said.  
  
He turned and then looked at her, startled.  
  
"Sorry... my clothes were dirty and everything, so I had to wash them..." she had the covers pulled up to her chin. She was so embarrassed. This was the last situation she wanted to be in with Link.  
  
He sort of chuckled, then walked into the bathroom. A few minutes later, she heard the water. He was taking a shower.  
  
She thought about her little chat with Zelda... she was the chosen one? What the heck did that mean? Zelda had said it was her destiny... 'So my destiny is to play some stupid song on an orcarina?' she wondered. How was that going to happen? She had never played an instrument before, never mind an ocarina. What made Zelda so sure that she could easily play a song on an instrument she had never even touched?! And why couldn't Link play the song? It was crazy to say that she was the one who knew it... she must have learned it somewhere. How was it possible that she was born with the knowledge to play a song...?  
  
Link walked out from the bathroom in his tunic. When he saw Marissa staring at the fire, he asked, "Whatcha thinkin' about?"  
  
"Nothing important." She quickly replied.  
  
"You sure?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
She rolled over to her side to face him. "Link, why am I the chosen one? I mean... what's so special about me?"  
  
"I dunno... well, for one... you're the only one who knows the Song of Eternity..."  
  
"Why can't you play the stupid song?"  
  
"I'm not the chosen one! I can't!"  
  
"Well neither am I! I don't believe in destiny! Or the stars, or karma, or anything else like that!"  
  
"You're so stubborn, Marissa... just give it a chance!" Link laughed.  
  
"Well I'm sorry but that's who I am. You can't change that." She said, a little defensive.  
  
"Whoah... chill out! I was only kidding!" he insisted.  
  
"No you weren't! You were dead serious! You've said it before, remember?!" she reminded.  
  
"Marissa, I was JOKING!!" he said again.  
  
"I didn't ask to be put in the middle of this messed up world! I didn't ask to be dumped into the middle of this stupid quest!"  
  
"Marissa, calm down!" Link said, a little more seriously.  
  
"No, Link, NO! I hate this! I really do! You weren't ripped from your world and into mine! It's not fair! No one knows how confusing it is! Did you ever stop to think that?! And you, the *Hero of Time* claims to need my help! You can't even play a song on your stupid ocarina!" Marissa accused. She had exploded. She had run away, and still he was treating her the same. They all kept forgetting she was from another world! And if he really wanted her help, he was going to have to show some respect.  
  
"If you listened to what Zelda said-" he began, trying to speak calmly.  
  
"What Zelda said is BULLSHIT!!!" Marissa said loudly, trying to get the impact of the words to go straight through Link's heart.  
  
She had seen the way his face had lit up earlier that day. He loved Zelda. It was so obvious.  
  
"Marissa, I don't believe you! You don't care about anyone but yourself! The world doesn't revolve around you, ya know!" Link yelled back, his anger getting the best of hum.  
  
"You are SO stuck up! Just because you're the guy who has to save the world over and over again doesn't mean you're anything special!  
  
"At least I'm not a selfish little bitch!" he shot back. It was then that he saw Marissa was crying.  
  
"Shut the hell up, Link! You don't even know me!" she choked out. Then there was silence.  
  
Guilt stabbed at Link while they both lay there. He could hear her sobbing quietly. What had he done? He knew Navi wouldn't be happy... he didn't even know where she was.  
  
The silence settled over the room like an unwelcoming fog.  
  
He thought before he spoke, choosing his words carefully. "Please... let me try..." he whispered, just loud enough for her to hear.  
  
As her words lingered in his ears, he hoped she would forgive him for his words.  
  
Marissa rolled over so her back was facing Link. He 'wanted to get to know her'. There was something about Link... but she couldn't put her finger on it. She prayed he would forgive her for what she had said.  
  
It was quiet again. And they drifted into a restless slumber. 


	18. The Dream

A/N ~ The Dream! Duh duh!!!!!!!!!!! Hee hee, this chappy has a weird scene in it... but I won't tell ya. Oh, and if Titanic was rated PG-13, this has a fine rating. Heh heh heh... no, it's not what you're thinking. Oh, and it's also pretty deep, too. So I'm warnin' ya. And it's also weird at one part 'cause Link is just... well, thinking. He does that sometimes too, ya know. (LOL - I'm JOKING.) More of the Sages being crazy... please keep in mind I love them all (Alright, so Saria's not my favorite. Oh well. BITE me. :P) and that's why I make fun of them. XD And I had to add one or two of my little side notes in here, so that's what's in the *triple* parentheses. Ya know, these things. (((HI!))) (^_^) Anywho, please please PLEASE REVIEW!!!! I really wanna know what everyone thinks of this (strange) chapter... Thanks! (^. O)  
  
Disclaimer ~ I wish I did, but I don't... ::sniffle::  
  
Chapter XVIII * The Dream  
  
"How are they ever going to work together to save the realm?" Rauru asked.  
  
"It's not fair! How come we can't talk to Link, my fiancé, telepathically?!" Ruto complained.  
  
"If it was destiny that those two were supposed to be paired up... well, it's just crazy!" Darunia sighed.  
  
"I say we combine our powers and save the Sacred Realm!" Saria cried. All the others looked at each other.  
  
"Saria..." Nabooru began. "WE ALREADY TRIED THAT! THAT'S WHY Link HAS TO GET THE ETERNAL DIAMOND!!!" she screamed.  
  
"Oh YEAH!!" Saria remembered.  
  
They all rolled their eyes.  
  
"Anywho... I wish there was some way we could help..." Impa said. "Well, think of it this way... she... the chosen one... knows what to do, thanks to Zelda, so once Link is fully healed they'll be headed to unlock the Diamond of Eternity and before we know it, they'll be here attacking that evil evil EVIL Ganondorf!!!" Nabooru reminded.  
  
"Yeah brother, but Link needs TWO DAYS for them ribs to heal!" Darunia added.  
  
"HEY! I'm not your BROTHER!!!" Nabooru yelled.  
  
"Calm down everyone..." Rauru told them all. "We just need to have patience. Ganondorf has somewhat of an idea that they're coming... but he doesn't know when. He can't cause that much destruction and chaos in just two more days..."  
  
"Oh yes he can..." Impa whispered. "Yes, he can..."  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
Link nearly tumbled out of the bed and onto the hard floor. He gripped onto the nightstand and winced as the pain shot through his chest. He pulled himself back up to a sitting position, and sighed. Wiping away the perspiration that had begun to drip down the sides of his face, he reached to turn a light on.  
  
Remembering Marissa, he quickly stopped. He didn't want to wake her. Then, recalling her clothing issue, he knew she wouldn't appreciate him seeing her if her sheets had gotten tossed around or something.  
  
He looked around the shadow-filled room... at first, Link wondered why there was no moonlight... wondered if it had gone astray in the dark sky above. Then he remembered where they were; Death Mountain Crater.  
  
The fire that had once burned in the fireplace had gone out, leaving nothing but cold black coals.  
  
Cold like Marissa... black like her heart...  
  
Link wondered what was really up with that girl.  
  
He spotted Navi sprawled out on the Zora and Goron Tunics. Her glow had died down, but not completely.  
  
The small room was so dark... the shadows cast on the walls swayed and danced while he studied them.  
  
One looked like an upside-down Zora... the next a deformed great fairy. One looked a little like a Gerudo, and the shadow next to that one resembled Navi. The one next to that could be called...  
  
He felt his throat close up.  
  
Ganondorf.  
  
It looked just like Ganondorf...  
  
All the thoughts about shadows ran together with his fear as he closed his eyes. He remembered his dream.  
  
He had been opening the Sacred Realm with Marissa... but Ganondorf knew all of their plans and met them before they could even set foot in the realm. Instead, they were in the dimension between Hyrule and the heavens. Ganondorf had just laughed... and then showed him Zelda... he transported her to where he was holding her to right before their very eyes...  
  
He had almost been sick. Her throat... slit... blood...everywhere. He looked back and suddenly Marissa was on the floor too.  
  
He couldn't wake up... standing there... watching the blood ooze out of their bodies... spewing out all over her body... and the ground... and his hands...  
  
And Ganondorf laughed. And he took them. And he turned them and himself into shadows... and they were gone. And he was alone. Again. Alone... as always.  
  
He couldn't stand it. Maybe he couldn't prove to himself that Zelda was okay, but nothing was going to stop him from checking Marissa...  
  
He crawled out of the bed, and walked to the other side of the room. If she woke up and saw him... oh boy, he'd be in for it!! He crept over to her, and saw that she was still sleeping with her back to him.  
  
Walking around to the other side of the cot, he knelt down, wincing because of his ribs.  
  
Her face had a calm, sincere expression on it and her curly dark hair framed the sides. He had a sudden urge to touch it... but knew better. He blinked. This were so confusing... with Zelda... Marissa... complicated... he longed to be with Zelda again. But there was something so different about Marissa...  
  
He reached to touch her neck, seeing it wasn't cut. He hesitated, but then continued anyway. Gently, he stroked down her neck and onto her shoulder. That was where the sheets began to cover her. All he could see were the straps of her bra. (((THANK GOD! Who knows what Link might have done!! Anywhos...))) He took a breath and moved closer to her.  
  
He startled himself when he felt his lips brush against her smooth skin on her neck. He pulled his face back and closed his eyes.  
  
What was he doing? It couldn't be that way. He decided he would leave it at that.  
  
Link stood up, and made his way back to his own cot, and curled up. The next time he would open his eyes wouldn't be for a while. 


	19. Trip to the Ranch

A/N ~ Well, after the argument, things have gotta move on... and that's exactly what begins to happen in this chapter. Things are beginning to change... at first, slowly... then... drastically... mwwa haa haa aahhah hahahha!!!! Okay. Anywhos, this is a weird chapter. (is it just me, or have I said they're all weird...?) I make fun of Malon here... please, no one kill me... she talks in a valley girl voice. okay? Maybe like a hillbilly... lol!!!! But I don't have anything against her. 'kay..? Oh, and they're all like.. obsessing over the frickin milk... lol! Oh well. So... please review!! Thanks sooo much! (^_^)  
  
Disclaimer ~ No, I do not own any of the Zelda peoples. I wanna try some Lon Lon Milk!! Heh heh..  
  
  
  
Chapter XIX * Trip to the Ranch  
  
The next day, Link slept until the late afternoon. Marissa had gone out with Tadashi, and he had woken up to find an empty guesthouse. Even Navi was gone! She was supposed to stay with him at all times, just as the Great Deku Tree had ordered... but he was glad that she was going off and having fun.  
  
Link got up, and put on his familiar green tunic, since he had changed during the night. (((Into WHAT exactly, I don't know. I don't think I want to.)))  
  
He was raking his fingertips through his hair, when there was a knock on the door. He pulled his hat on, and went to open the door. It was Tadashi, Marissa, and Navi.  
  
"Glad you're finally up, Link!" Tadashi joked. "Must've been tired, huh?"  
  
"Uh... yeah..."  
  
"Link, please don't tell anyone that I left you alone! The Deku Sprout thing will KILL me! And we were only gone a little while... I decided you couldn't get into THAT much trouble, anyway!" Navi pleaded.  
  
"Don't worry, Navi..." he assured.  
  
"So are you feeling better?" Tadashi questioned.  
  
"For a guy with broken ribs, I'm feeling great." He answered. Tadashi laughed, while Marissa avoided his eyes.  
  
"So what are you going to do for the rest of the day?" she wanted to know.  
  
"Um... I don't really know..." Link answered as Marissa shrugged.  
  
"Hmm... Well, do you know where you're staying tonight?"  
  
"Not really..."  
  
"Oh. Pretty undecided, huh?"  
  
"Uh... I guess..." Link didn't always understand Tadashi. She didn't always make sense to him with her witty remarks, and corny jokes... sometimes he wondered if she had something wrong with her head...  
  
Link blinked. What was he talking about...?  
  
"Link! Ya wanna see my time stopping ability?! I've imprrrrrrrrrroooovved!!" Navi offered.  
  
"Sure."  
  
"Okay!"  
  
Once again, she began spinning in a circle. Picking up her speed, along with pale blue dust flying everywhere, she released a flash of bright light, blinding everyone.  
  
She obviously had improved, since a cake didn't appear. Instead, however, something ELSE was there...  
  
"Oh my! Is that a...?" gasped Tadashi.  
  
"Oh, EWW!! That's just nasty!! Someone get rid of that like... now!!!" Marissa ordered, a disgusted look on her face.  
  
"AHHHH!!! Link, you WERE RIGHT!! Those things are all... eww!!" Navi cried.  
  
"What'd I tell ya?" he shook his head, and bent down to pick the *thing* up. He held it as far away from him as possible, and threw it out the window.  
  
They all heard a scream outside, and Tadashi ran to the window to apologize to the Kyphorien who Link accidentally hit with the *thing*.  
  
"Good for nothin' nasty horny HYLIANS!!!" the old woman screamed at them all.  
  
Then they all had to help Link sanitize his hands.  
  
A few minutes later, Tadashi announced that she was going to help reconstruct the town. Link had already decided to go to Lon Lon Ranch, but hadn't yet told Marissa.  
  
Tadashi smiled at the two, and then walked out.  
  
"Hey, uh... Marissa. I'm going to Lon Lon Ranch today to visit a friend, okay? Do you wanna come?" Link said slowly, hoping she wouldn't slap him because of the previous night.  
  
"Sure." She answered casually. Link realized she was going to act as if nothing had happened.  
  
"Alright." He grabbed his pack of equipment and swung on his sheathe and shield. "Let's go, then."  
  
The two left Death Mountain, and Link beckoned Epona. She came galloping, and this time, Marissa got aboard without Link's help.  
  
'Showing off, perhaps?' he wondered. He climbed on quickly, and they rode around Hyrule Field once of twice. Link wasn't really counting.  
  
When Marissa didn't object to the speed, he urged Epona to her fastest, and they raced, finally becoming lost in the wind... in the sky... and in the clouds.  
  
Marissa was enjoying herself. She had already figured out that Link was going around just for fun, and for some reason, she was completely okay with that. She wouldn't mind going faster. Shutting her eyes, she sighed.  
  
Back home, she couldn't ever do this. Ever. There wasn't a place where she could be as free as she was now. There wasn't even a place as beautiful as this... no Lake Hylia, and certainly no volcanoes. She realized she didn't want to leave Hyrule.  
  
"We're here!" Link exclaimed, cutting through her deep thoughts.  
  
"Oh, right." They both hopped down, and Link grabbed onto Epona's reins. The trio all walked under the towering arch that read 'Lon Lon Ranch' in the ancient Hylian language. It led to two houses, and a huge corral.  
  
They led Epona past the stable, chicken coop, and the main house and up to the corral's front gates. Malon, a red haired girl in a cotton dress was standing in the middle of the field belting out weird song as she groomed a black horse. She didn't notice them right away, and Link had to call to get her attention.  
  
"Malon!! MALON!!!" he cried. She still didn't hear. She was singing too loudly. "MAAALLOONN!!!!" he screamed. Finally, she looked up and grinned.  
  
"Why, hello there, fairy boy!" she called, walking over to the gates. "How've you been?" Malon asked, unlocking them.  
  
"Okay, I guess... and you?" Link replied.  
  
"We're all pretty good down here, too."  
  
Suddenly, her eyes locked with Marissa's. The bright blue vortexes seemed to burn holes into the dull green ones. Her icy stare softened when she said, "Who's THIS, Link?!"  
  
"Oh, uh, this is my friend Marissa. She's helping us on our new quest."  
  
"Ahh." Malon nodded. "So what brings y'all down to the ranch?"  
  
"Nothing really... I got hurt pretty badly fighting a dragon and I need another day to rest up, so basically, we're here to kill time." Link chuckled.  
  
"Well, in THAT case, I guess I'd better show y'all some good-country- hospitality, and invite y'all in for some fresh-unsanitized milk!" Malon giggled in her freakishly high-pitched valley girl voice.  
  
She led them all into the main house of the ranch, where there was a kitchen, what appeared to be a door leading to a bathroom, and a staircase. She gestured for the two to sit down, and to make themselves right at home. Then, she joined them after setting down three glasses of that *famous* Lon Lon Milk.  
  
Link took a big gulp, and nodded approvingly. "Mmmm! I swear, Malon, this milk gets better each time!" Marissa picked up the glass, wondering why exactly they were being served milk. Thinking twice, she just took a sip. She was shocked. Never before in her entire life had she ever tasted such delightful milk!!"  
  
"Oh my God!! Malon, this is great!" she said.  
  
Malon smiled. "Thanks! Here at Lon Lon Ranch, we're known for our extraordinary milk!"  
  
Link nodded in agreement. Marissa smiled.  
  
"So, tell me how your adventure's going. I know Ganondorf has Zelda in the Sacred Realm, and yesterday there was all this pink bubbly shizzat floating around the stables, scarin' all the cows and horses and sheep and goats and whatever other aminals happened to be in there at that point in time... and I guessed that was 'cause of Ganondorf."  
  
"Yeah. We've seen that before... and Ganondorf is defiantly causing it. As for getting into the Sacred Realm... Ganondorf has blocked most of the entrances, and there's one legend of a diamond... with the Emerald of Life, the Sapphire of Hope, and the Ruby of Love, you play the everlasting song on the Ocarina of Time, and the Eternal Diamond is released, and that opens the Sacred Realm." Link quickly explained. Malon looked stunned.  
  
"Well, THAT is certainly an interesting plan... I hope it works! You HAVE to vanquish Ganondorf, Link, you have to! He's so... evil! Always kidnapping the princess... trying to take over... he'll never learn! This time, teach him a lesson he won't forget!"  
  
"I'll try... but it's hard!" Link laughed.  
  
The joking died down, and Malon sighed. "So how's Epona been?"  
  
"Great. I don't know what I'd do without that horse... she's really very helpful."  
  
"And the way you tamed her... oh, GOLLY! She was so wild... now she's great. She really does trust you, Link. She's still nervous around me! And Marissa! She seems to trust you a lot too... tell me, have you had much experience with horses?"  
  
"Well... I guess you could say so. I lived with my aunt for five years, until I was eleven. She had a ranch, and every chance I got I rode the horses." She smiled at the memory.  
  
"Really?" Link raised his eyebrows.  
  
"Yeah." She nodded. Malon grinned mischievously, and said, "How are you at racing...?"  
  
"Is that a challenge?" Marissa smiled back after a moment.  
  
"You bet it is!!" Malon laughed.  
  
"Can I barrow Epona then, Link? Please?" Marissa looked at him.  
  
"Sure. But let me warn you... Malon's good. She can beat me pretty easily."  
  
"Thanks Link, but I'm pretty good myself."  
  
"Link smiled at her witty remark, even though he should have been insulted. He stood up with the two, and headed outside.  
  
"Oh wait... I'll be right back. I can't ride in there here dress..." Malon realized. She ran up the steps, and into the room that was clearly hers, while Link and Marissa headed out the door.  
  
"You never said anything about being around horses before..." he said, walking ahead, leading the way to the corral where they had let Epona graze.  
  
"Well... you never asked." She skipped up next to him. Link could tell she was excited. He laughed, and pulled open the gates. Epona was at the end of the field. When the two finally made their way over to her, Link helped Marissa up into the saddle.  
  
"Thanks." She said. He smiled.  
  
Marissa wondered if they had even had that argument the night before.  
  
Suddenly, Malon appeared, wearing a D.A.R.E. t-shirt, some XXXXXXLarge jogging shorts, a pair of rubber boots, and a huge straw hat.  
  
"Ya ready?!" she called.  
  
"Bring it on!!" Marissa shouted.  
  
They both laughed, and Malon walked into the corral. There was a black- maned chocolate horse that was saddled at the other end of the area. Malon went over to it, climbed up, and trotted back over to them.  
  
"We'll race on the track around the corral. Once around should be good, 'kay?"  
  
"Okay." Marissa nodded.  
  
They both rode out of the corral and stood behind the white line that had previously been drawn on the dirt track. It was pretty wide, so they wouldn't have any problems switching lanes, even though there really weren't any.  
  
Link decided he'd do the commands. He stepped back onto the grass, and looked at both girls. "Okay. Ready... set... GO!" 


	20. Day at the Races

A/N ~ Yay, chappy 20!!!! :P this is basically about the race... and Cowbob! Cowbob is funny... heh heh... Anyway, thanks to all those who review... I wwwuuuvvv you!! hee hee... please r/r! thanks! (^_^) ... do you really think Link and Marissa should get jiggy wid it...?  
  
Disclaimer ~ I think this title is the name of a mini battle game from Mario Party 2... lol! But they own their game, not my chapter. And they own all the Zelda characters too.  
  
  
  
Chapter XX * Day at the Races  
  
Epona lunged forward, yanking Marissa with her. She felt a rush of cool wind blast onto her fast as the horse's hooves pounded the dirt. Epona was going even faster than the first time she and Link had been riding her. This time, however, it was much easier and less nerve-wracking because she herself was in the driver's seat.  
  
Marissa looked over, expecting to see Malon. She gasped. Malon was already ahead of her.  
  
Marissa leaned down into Epona's mane, and concentrated. Link had tamed the horse really well. She didn't slow down at all. Now, Epona was gaining on Malon. They got closer and closer, until they were side by side. Malon looked over at Marissa, and she turned to look at her. After exchanging a competitive smile, they returned their attention back to the race.  
  
Now Marissa was in the lead. She was about to go flying past the starting line, and begin the second lap...  
  
Link stood watching the two. He has never seen Marissa so happy... so enthusiastic about anything. She looked so determined to show... no, to prove to Malon, and even him that she was skilled with horses. And there was no doubt she was. Malon was having a hard time keeping up. They were more than halfway around the track, now. Malon was catching up again. She had obviously been training that horse for racing. She was still gaining... gaining... rounding the bend...hooves pounding... pounding... final lap!  
  
'No! I've gotta loose her...' Marissa thought desperately. She was gripping Epona's mane so tightly, her hands were turning white. She was breathing quickly, causing herself to pant. She had to beat Malon. She just had to. She had to show Link that she could do something.  
  
They were approaching the halfway point. Malon was just behind her. Past halfway... her head was throbbing, and her heart, racing. Epona needed to go faster... Marissa pushed her feet into the horse's sides, urging her faster as they rounded the corner for the final time. It was so close... Malon was next to her, breathing heavily.  
  
Marissa realized how warn out Epona must have been. 'But it's just a bit further...' she thought. The finish line was only a few yards away, and Link stepped back so he wouldn't get run over. Epona was still ahead, but only by an inch. Marissa forced enough strength into her legs to kick the horse in a last attempt to speed over the line.  
  
Epona whinnied, and sprinted past Malon, past the finish line, and past Link.  
  
The horse slowed to a trot, and Marissa yelled, "WHOOO!!!" she practically broke her leg, jumping out of the saddle and running over to a shocked Malon, and an impressed Link.  
  
"Marissa, that was great!" Link congratulated.  
  
"You sure weren't lyin'! You're really skilled! But it was close... great job!! I demand I rematch later!" Malon laughed. Epona trotted over to them, and Marissa rubbed her nose.  
  
A few minutes later, they were all back inside the small kitchen, drinking more Lon Lon Milk.  
  
"So where are you headed to next?" Malon asked.  
  
"We don't really know. We're just killing time, remember?" Link shrugged.  
  
"Well why don't you stay here for awhile? Hey, if you need a place to sleep, we got an extra room upstairs!"  
  
"That'd be great! Thanks, Malon!  
  
"Sure! No problem!"  
  
"Say... where's Talon and Ingo?" Link wanted to know.  
  
"Oh, who knows. They're supposed to be doing a job for some Kokiri who's moving to the other end of the forest... they're supposed to be back in a few days.  
  
"Oh, okay."  
  
"So... now what? What time is it, like six o' clock?" Marissa asked after a short pause.  
  
Malon and Link looked at her, confused.  
  
"...What?" she asked.  
  
"Six o' clock...?" Link repeated.  
  
"Yeah... six o' clock." Marissa nodded.  
  
"No! I mean, what IS six o' clock?"  
  
"OH! RIGHT! HYRULE! Never mind. In my world, back where I come from, we use clocks and watches to tell what time it is. Six o' clock is pretty late in the afternoon."  
  
"Oh. We don't have anything like that here... but yeah; it is really late in the afternoon. It'll be getting dark soon," Malon replied.  
  
"Oh."  
  
"I know! Let's go milk some cows!!" Malon suggested.  
  
"Okay..." Link and Marissa hesitantly agreed.  
  
So, the trio went into the stable and Malon pulled up a stool and sat down in front of a huge cow.  
  
"Now, this is Cowbob, the cow. She's a mighty fine cow. Why, I remember way back in the day when Cowbob was just a li'l calf and we called her Cowbobby. She was the rebel in the lot! When all the other calves were eating grass, she'd be running amuck, pretendin' she be a black bull! We think Cowbob here, had a gender change at Plastica Fantasica in Zora's Domain, because she acts so much like a rabid savage bull, instead of a nice cow like she should be!" Malon continued on like this for about an hour. When she finally shut up, she asked the two if they wanted to try to milk Cowbob.  
  
"No... I don't really wanna... I mean, it looks kinda... eww..." Marissa stuttered.  
  
"Yeah, and I'm sorta tired. My ribs hurt." Link sided with her.  
  
"OH. Well fine then. You can go to the guestroom then." Malon stood up, a little insulted.  
  
"Sorry, Malon, but we're just tired." Link said again.  
  
"It's okay, Link. I understand. You've gotta save Hyrule... Go rest up, hero." 


	21. Free

A/N ~ This is personally one of my favorite chapters... it's silly. :P (yes, I know how corny that sounds) but really, this is a good chapter. Okay anyway, please r/r! Thaaannnkk yooouu!! (^. O)  
  
Disclaimer ~ Nope, I do not own any of the Zelda characters. If I did, I wouldn't be writing fanfics, I'd be making more games with adult Link, not kid Link!! Hee hee!  
  
Chapter XXI * Free  
  
"We only have one bed so you'll have to sorta... well, share." Malon announced, pulling open the wooden door, revealing a well-furnished bedroom. There was a blue, green and white quilt on the queen size bed, and matching throw pillows. Then, in one corner, next to the bed, was an oak nightstand with a lamp perched on it. There was also a bureau with a wide mirror at the other end of the room. Standing in the other corner next to the bed, was a tall chrome lamp. Almost immediately, Marissa went to jump on the bed. She laughed, and sat down. "This sure beats those cots!" "Thanks a lot, Malon. I owe ya one." Link looked at her. She smiled back at him. "No problem." Once she had left, Link sat down at the foot of the bed and began polishing his sword, basically because there was nothing better to do. Marissa was talking to Navi, curled up with a pillow, under the covers already. "Where IS the Temple of Time, anyway?" she asked. "It's in Hyrule Castle Market. Hey, Link... I just thought of something... where are we gonna put the three jewels? There's no slot thing for them... at least, not that I remember..." Navi sighed. "Hmm... I don't think there's a place to put them either. Well, we've gotta remember that the Diamond of Eternity is legendary... it's probably not supposed to be easy to find..." Link answered. "True... that's true. But I hope this won't be too difficult." "Don't worry about it, Navi. We can take it. Just think about all the other times we've had to fight Ganon, and rescue Zelda..." "Link, can I ask you a question?" Marissa suddenly asked. "Sure." He looked at her. "What's really the story with you and Zelda?" "Ugh..." Link sighed heavily. "I don't really know. Sometimes she's so confusing... changing her mind about everything all the time... but yeah. I guess I do love her." A smile spread onto Marissa's face, even though she was slightly hurt. "I knew it!" He laughed. "Link has had a crush on Zelda ever since he first met her!" Navi reported. Now Marissa laughed too. "Where did you get such a crazy little fairy anyway?" "She was sort of assigned to me... I got her when I was ten." He answered. "... What's with all the questions?" he asked after a moment. "I dunno..." she shrugged. "Just trying to create conversation, I guess..." "Can I ask some?" he suggested. Marissa nodded. "Okay... so how old are you?" "Sixteen..." "Uh... what do you like to do?" "Well... I like horses... music... mini golf..." "Mini golf?" "It's a game where you try to hit this ball into a hole with a stick." "Ooohhh... sounds... stimulating..." "And swimming." She finished. "What about you?" "Well, I like doing things outside... being adventurous... well, I guess I have to... or else I wouldn't be saving Hyrule all the time... and I also like horses. Without Epona, I would never be able to get anywhere, because Hyrule is so big." "Yeah. Hyrule is huge... what's it like living here? Back in my world, we have to go to school until we're eighteen, and then get a job to make money... and we have phones, and TVs, and computers... there's nothing like that here. And back home, there's no dragons, or princesses or fairies... no magic. This whole place is like a fantasy... but it's real. YOU'RE real... not just a robin-hood video game character." She sighed. "I guess I was just so angry that I had been brought here without a reason... but I love it here. It's so quiet and peaceful... not like it is at home..." Link stood up. "I guess after Ganon is defeated, we both have to face a part of destiny that we don't want to... you'll be sent back to your own world, and Zelda's going to take back the Ocarina of time, and I'll be sent back to the past." He walked over to his sheathe and slid the Master Sword inside. "What are you talking about?!" Marissa demanded. "The last time Ganon took Zelda, I had fallen asleep for seven years right after the Door of time was opened. I was able to travel back and forth through time by using the Master Sword and the ocarina... but Zelda is set on sending me back so I can live out those seven years instead of sleeping through them. Then, after they pass, I'll be as I am now. But what'll I do for seven years?! I'll go back and live with the Korokis until I start growing up because when they realize I'm not one of them, they'll kick me out of the forest. I'll have no place to go, and nothing to do..." he explained. "Why does she have to send you back?! That's really... mean!" "She just wants me to have the chance to grow up like anyone should... I've missed out on learning so much." "You could stay here at the ranch with Malon, right?" "I guess... but there's so much more to life than milking cows and riding horses... I need to be... free." He sighed, and sat back down. They were both quiet for a while. The two lamps on both sides of them gave the room it's light, and Link reached to turn one off. "I wanna help fight Ganon." Marissa announced. "What?!?!" Link was so shocked he didn't even get to turn off the light. "I want to help fight Ganon with you." she repeated. "Are you CRAZY?!" he practically screamed. "Why?! What's wrong with helping?!" "Only about ten billion things!!! You could get yourself killed!" "No I won't... I can defend myself!" "Marissa, please don't take this the wrong way, but... well, what do you know about fighting?!" "Well I never took martial arts or anything, but how hard could it possibly be?!" Link rolled his eyes and laughed. "If Ganon hit you once, it'd probably kill you!" he jokingly slugged her in the shoulder. "Eww! Don't TOUCH me, you child molester!!" she laughed, hitting him back. "Hey, you wanna start somethin'?!" "You bet I do!" "Bring it on!!" Link practically tackled Marissa off the bed and soon they were laughing hysterically. She punched him in the chest about five times, and Link kept kicking her feet. "Ow! Link, watch where you're aiming for!!!" Marissa laughed, wrapping her arms around herself. Then, she jabbed her elbow into his stomach. Link just kept laughing and slugging her. Suddenly, Link stopped, and he moaned. "Oh my GOD!!! I'm so sorry, Link!" Marissa apologized, her hand over her mouth. She couldn't help but smile. She had pushed her knee into him without really looking and now he was on the opposite side of the bed, his hands on... *ahem* Navi was flying around the room insanely, shrieking, "STOP THE VIOLENCE!!!" A few minutes later, Link sat back up, and said, "Geeze, Marissa! I hope you didn't BREAK anything!!" they both laughed and began their battle again. Link let Marissa pin him down, only so they could stop. She grinned and squeezed his wrists down against the quilt so tightly, she could feel his pulse. They were both panting and the beat was rapid. She felt it slow as she kept him pinned underneath her. Her hair was falling all over the place when Link finally pushed he off. She brushed her hand through it, and lay back on a pillow. Link sat up, sighed, and got off the bed. He began fixing the quilt, since it had been wrinkled and rolled around due to their fighting. He yanked it towards him, so it would be even. Marissa yelped as she was pulled towards him along with the covers. "Link, what are you doing?! Ahhh!!" she cried when he didn't stop. He laughed evilly, "Mwwaa haa haaa!! How much do you weigh, anyway? Like... nothing?!" "No! I weigh like one hundred pounds!" she answered when the bed cover was finally fixed. "Oh, Nayru! What are ya, anorexic? That means I could probably pick you up and... throw you through the ceiling!" he laughed. "Oh my God!!!" Marissa eyed him nervously. Link jumped down on her, and pinned her arms. "Okay, you're really scaring me now... you're possessed!!" she laughed. "I know." "Get off!" "No!" "Why?!" "Because!" "You're crazy!!" "I know!" "C'mon, Link! You're crushing my lungs and I can't breathe." "I'm not even ON you!!" "But if you FALL, you will be!!" He grinned evilly again, and chuckled. He let go of her, and lay down on the other side of the bed next to her. And that's where they fell asleep. 


	22. To the Temple of Time

A/N ~ This chapter is just about them going to the Temple of Time... (Obviously) there's mention of rape here, but it didn't happen! Just mentioning the word a couple times... lol.  
  
Disclaimer ~ I don't own any of the Zelda characters, and if you thought I did, you're weird.  
  
Chapter XXII * To the Temple of Time  
  
Marissa's eyes slowly fluttered open, still heavy with sleep. She looked around the room. Both lamps were still on, and the window over the bed revealed the sun was shinning. It look a moment for her to realized that it was hard to breathe. And she was warm. What the heck was ON her?! She tried to squirm out from under it, but it was too heavy. That was when she realized the Link was lying on her! "Ugh... Link! Get off me!" she moaned. He didn't budge. "LINK!" she tried to push him off again. He groaned and moved his arm, smacking her in the face. He was lying across her chest, and Marissa was in a very uncomfortable position. She stopped moving and sighed. What was he doing LYING on her anyway?! She began to wonder... last night when they had been playing around... that was what she would call a tremendous about of flirting. She couldn't help but smile, imagining Princess Zelda's reaction if she had seen them. "Link... wake up..." she whispered. He still didn't move. "Link! God, you're a heavy sleeper..." she sighed. "Navi!!" she yelled. "Navi! Help me!!" Link's body was really crushing her lungs now. And she still wanted to know why he had rolled over and onto her in the first place. Marissa lay there, with Link lying horizontally over her body for about twenty minutes. His face was sideways on the bed and she could see his eyes open, then close again. She didn't say anything. He opened his eyes again, finally waking up. He shut them again, but realizing he was lying all over Marissa, he flashed open his sapphire eyes to see her face. She was smiling mischievously. "Link... why are you sleeping on me...?" "Uhh... good question..." he turned red and rolled off. "Sorry... I must have just... uh..." "Rolled onto me, huh?" she laughed. "I know you WANT me." He laughed too.  
  
They got up to make then bed, and Navi flew out of Link's hat when he picked it up to put it on. "Oh, BOY!! I sure had a good sleep!!" she announced flying around the room. "Me too." Marissa agreed. "Better than those cots..." Link added. "You slept pretty gosh-darn soundly on that cot, Link. Until the afternoon, remember?" Marissa reminded. "Well I was tired... I had just fought Lavalgia! Besides, here at the ranch... well, I would have slept longer if no one woke me up." He chuckled. "If you hadn't been lying on me like that, I wouldn't have woken you!" Marissa teased. They tossed the throw pillows on the bed and sat down. "So where are we going today?" Marissa asked. "To the Temple of Time. We'll open the door to the Sacred Realm, barge in, and kick Ganon's butt!!!" Navi answered. "Zelda said that when we get there... you'd know what to do...?" "Yeah. You'll see." She smiled mysteriously. "LINK!!! MARISSA!!!" called a voice. "C'MON DOWN FOR BREAKFAST!!!" it was Malon. Link ran to the door, and opened it. "We're coming!!!" then turning to Marissa, he said, "Let's go breakfast." "Okay. Hang on..." she answered, trying to fix her hair. "It's okay. I'll just ask Malon for a hair tie... they have those in Hyrule, right?" she asked as she walked over to Link. He laughed and they left the room, Navi behind them.  
  
"Pass the cutter, please!" Malon handed Link the butter and he preceded to swipe some onto his toast and then shove it down his throat. Marissa took a sip of her glass of milk. "Malon, do you have a hair tie I could barrow?" she asked. "Uh... lemme THINK... yeah, I do. I'll get it for ya after." "Okay, thanks." "No problem. Did you both sleep well?" "I did!" Link announced. "That's 'cause you slept on ME!" Marissa joking. "Oh, Link! DID you?!" Malon asked. "Well, uh... I woke up and I was kinda... well, you know. I must have rolled over one too many times and just happened to end up on her and..." "EW, Link! That's sick! You're SICK, Link, SICK!!!" Malon gave him a very dirty and unclean look. "Malon, I didn't RAPE her or anything!!" Link insisted. "I certainly HOPE not! Poor Marissa will be a single mother in a world where people with nice pointy ears are not accepted by society... think of the child's life! It'd have to stay here with Link! And think of what they would say! The Korokis... Ganon... Zelda! Oh GOLLY, I wouldn't wanna be around when Zelda finds out that Link raped someone..." "Malon, chill out! Link didn't rape me!!" Marissa laughed. "He didn't! Trust me! I would have woken up for sure!!" Navi added. All three of them laughed this time. "SURE, Navi. Sure." Link nodded.  
  
A while later, after they had thanked Malon for the delicious breakfast and helped with the dishes, Marissa tied her hair up into a ponytail, and she and Link said their goodbyes to Malon. "Thanks so much, Malon. Link is lucky to have you as a friend!" Marissa said. "Yeah, thanks for everything." He added. "Oh, no problem! Just go kick Ganon's butt and stop the chaos... you have no idea how that stuff spooks the horses!" she laughed. Link helped Marissa up onto Epona, and said, "I really think you should be sitting here in front..." "It's okay. Besides, you need your practice." She giggled. "Bye Malon!" Link waved as he steered Epona for the entrance they had come through. He suddenly stopped, and turned her all the way around. Link looked back at Marissa. "Wanna see something cool?" "Okay..." Link stabbed his Koroki Boots into Epona, and she went sprinting forward. They where headed towards the wall. Marissa nearly strangled Link, hanging on for dear life as Epona's body leapt off the ground and went soaring over the wall. They landed hard, but neither of them fell off. Epona whinnied and began to gallop on Link's command. "That was awesome!!" Marissa exclaimed.  
  
They rode up to a huge drawbridge. "Epona's gotta stay here." Link hopped off. Marissa did the same, and they headed into the market, through the crowded streets, and into the Temple of Time. 


	23. Garage Doors

A/N ~ Obviously, I couldn't think of a catchy title... I have that problem a lot. (.)() oh well. they finally go to the Temple of Time!! Yay! Hee hee... thank you SOOO much for reviewing!! I love you all! (^____^) please r/r!!  
  
Disclaimer ~ Nope, I don't own Zelda characters... like anyone here on ff.net does... heh heh... lol  
  
  
  
Chapter XXIII * Garage Doors  
  
"Uh huh. SURE. Like I'm going to believe you, Zelda!" Ganon laughed. "Really! Ganon, you're such a fool! I was warning Link not to come!" "Whatever you say, princess." Zelda growled and rolled her eyes. He wasn't going to believe her excuse to why she was communicating with Link, even though she had certainly been convincing enough. "Don't worry. You'll like this. REALLY. Nice, and pain free... plus you won't have to see Link, *Hero of Time*," he said in a mocking tone, "get literally torn apart before your eyes." Ganon waved his massive arm and the rose crystal Zelda was imprisoned in vanished and she was left unprotected. "Hot ice. Heh." he muttered with another wave of this arm. Ice began crawling up her gown and soon covered every inch of her body, except her face. "Arrgh, Ganon! Link will make you pay!" she cried. "He'll make you pay!!!" Ganon walked out and headed over to the Chamber of Sages.  
  
* * *  
  
"Today is the day! Finally, Link, my fiancé, is going to come with Navi and that other girl to save me!! Oh, and the rest of the Sacred Realm." Ruto cheered. Nabooru's eyes rolled, and she said, "Oh, please. Ruto, get over yourself. Link isn't your fiancé, and you know it." "Yes he is!" "No he isn't!" "You guys are both wrong! Link is MY fiancé!" Saria interrupted. "YOU?! You little midget Koroki girl!? PLEASE!!" Ruto laughed. "Well, I've known Link for a very long time, and I'm sure he wouldn't want to marry some naked fish-faced freak like you!" she shot back. "No! You guys are right! Link doesn't want to marry a little midget Koroki girl, OR a naked fish-faced freak! Link is MY fiancé!!!" Rauru screamed. Everyone was silent. Saria, Ruto, and Nabooru all exchanged nervous glances. "Link is my brother!" Darunia yelled. "You're all nuts..." Impa sighed. They were suddenly disturbed by the sound of a door being flung open. Ganon stormed in, and stopped in the center of their circle. "SAGES!!!" he cried. "I demand for you to close all the entrances to the Sacred Realm! NOW!!!" "Look ya stupid-" Nabooru quickly stopped herself. "I mean... uh... my lord... there are many hidden entrances to the realm... there's no possible way we can close all the portals and warp points." "Excuse me?! You are all here to guard the Triforce and protect the Sacred Realm!! It's no wonder how I got here so easily! You don't even know where all the entrances are located!" "HEY! HOLD YOUR TONGUE! I never said we don't know all the entrances! We just can't block them all!" Nabooru yelled, her temper rising quickly. "Then tell me where they are and I'LL block them!" "No way!!" she refused. Ganon moved closer to her and grabbed her shoulders with his gigantic hands. "Tell me now, Nabooru. If you don't, I'll send a monster to destroy your little village of Gerudos." He threatened. "Not a chance. Would you really put your own home where you grew up under attack?!" "Yes." "... Stupid question." "I demand to know." "Too bad. Why the heck would I tell you? Besides. Aren't you the strongest person alive? I would have thought that YOU could take on ANYONE that would happen to stumble into the Sacred Realm... even Link." "Hmm... Good point. I AM the strongest... heh. Why miss the opportunity to kill that annoying pest? Thanks, Nabooru." Ganon said. "Now how about you and me go-" "No." "Fine. Have it your way." "I always do." She smirked. Ganon turned and left. "Wow, Nabooru... you're not afraid of him, huh?" Ruto commented. "Well, he is a Gerudo..." "I think that if Ganon wasn't so evil... he might be really sexy." Saria said. "Uhh... that's just GROSS, Saria." Ruto replied. "AM I THE ONLY SANE ONE HERE?!?!" Impa suddenly screamed. "You WERE, before you screamed that!" Rauru yelled. "This is crazy, my brothers!" Darunia moaned. "Yes it is..." Nabooru agreed. "I just hope my fiancé will save us all..." sighed Ruto.  
  
* * *  
  
"Oh, wow! This is so pretty! AND it echoes!!" Marissa shouted. She was running around the Temple of Time, while Link stood laughing. "Ooohh!! What are THESE?!" Marissa grabbed the red jewel that was hovering over an inscription between a green and blue one. "Marissa, no! Put that back!" Link yelled. "Cool!" she exclaimed, seeing the Door of Time at the end of the room begin to close. She put the Spiritual Stone back down, and watched the door open again. Then she started taking it in and out of it's place, and she laughed, seeing the door opening halfway, then closing, and before it could fully shut, back open again, back and forth, up and down. "Marissa, c'mon! Stop!" Link was laughing too. When she didn't listen and continued, he yelled, "Okay, that's it! You'd better RUN!!!" Link started after her. "AHH!!" she laughed and ran up the steps. He chased her into the room beyond the Door of Time. Marissa ran up to the pedestal that was home to the Master Sword, and let Link catch up. "What's this for?" she asked, looking down at the stand. "The Master Sword belongs here. This is where I first pulled it out." "Cool! Lemme see!" she grabbed the handle of his sword, and yanked it from the sheathe. "Marissa! NO! Really, I'm serious! DON'T PUT THE SWORD-" Too late. Marissa had already shoved the blade back into its original vertical resting place. There was a brilliant swirl of blue light and they were engulfed inside. "Oh my God!! What's happening, Link?!" Marissa yelled. "No! Farore!! Now we're going back in time seven years!" he shouted. The light spun around them, followed by a flash of white light. "We're all gonna die!!!" Navi screamed at the top of her lungs. When the light faded, there stood a ten-year-old Link, and an eight-year-old Marissa. "Oh my God!! What happened?! Why am I so short?!" Marissa looked over at Link. "OH MY GOD, LINK!!! AH HA HA HA!! You're so LITTLE!" she laughed. "You're little too, ya know!" he shot back. "This is me seven years ago... so I'm eight." "And I'm ten." "I'm NAVI!!!" Navi hollered. "This is so weird!!" Marissa giggled. "Can you take the sword back out now?" "No!" she laughed. "Link, you're not as cute when your younger, did you know that?" "Uh..." he blushed deeply and Marissa kept giggling. "Whoo woo!! I'm eight again!!" "C'mon, Marissa. We have to save the world." Link laughed. "Okay, fine..." she walked up to the pedestal and wrapped her hands around the sword. She pulled. And yanked. But it wouldn't budge. "Uh oh..." she whispered. "Uh, Link? I'm having a little problem here..." "What?" "I... can't... get... the... stupid... sword..." she growled, trying with all her might to pull the sword from it's stand. "Oh! That's RIGHT! I'm the only one who can pull it out!" he laughed. "...Why...?" "Because I'm the Hero of Time. You're not." He teased, walking over to her and the pedestal. He touched the blades handle and it easily slid out. "Here we go again..." Navi commented as the aqua light sprung up again and surrounded them in a beam of light.  
  
Now that they were both back to normal, Link dragged Marissa back to the first room. "Okay, now we need a place to put the jewels." Link said, taking out all three of them from his pack of items. "Marissa, you said you know what to do. Well...?" "Give me your ocarina." "What?!" "The ocarina. I need it." "What are you gonna do with it?" "I'm gonna play it!! What else would I do with it, burn it?!" "Well I dunno..." Link pulled out the instrument and handed it to her. She walked closer to the stand that had the Spiritual Stones hovering above it, while Link still held the emerald, sapphire, and ruby in his arms. Marissa stood there for a moment, wondering if the tune would just come to her, of if she had to think about it. She finally just took a deep breath, and moved the ocarina to her lips. Her eyes shut, she blew out, and began playing. 


	24. The Eternal Song

A/N ~ Hey, I finally got my hair re highlighted! It's been like a YEAR too... So I'm happy. (^_^) Here's chapter 24... Marissa plays the song, and they get into the Sacred Realm... oh, and they finally talk about the legend... poem thing about the Eternal Diamond... if you wanna read the whole thing, I have it here on ff.net under my name. Well, please r/r!! Thanks!! (^. O)  
  
Disclaimer ~ I don't own anything that has to do with Zelda... but I do own the Eternal Diamond and the Eternal Song and the Emerald of Life, Sapphire of Hope, and Ruby of Love, and whatever else I made up. Hee hee!  
  
Chapter XXIV * The Eternal Song  
  
The notes floated from the ocarina and echoed throughout the temple. The mysterious tune seemed to calm her. Marissa had no idea what she was doing. She wasn't making the song up as she went along, and she wasn't even trying to think about what note came next. She just played. Maybe Zelda was right. This was part of her destiny. How else could she be playing this song she had never heard before? She wouldn't control what fingers played what notes and she was glad. Otherwise; she would be messing up the whole song. She didn't even see Link gawking at her. She could only see the music. She didn't hear him whisperer, "The Eternal Song..." All she could hear was the music. And she didn't notice when he stepped closer to her and put his hand on her shoulder, because all she could feel was the music. The song finally ended, and she realized she was lowering the instrument. Link looked at her, shocked. "How'd you do that?!" "I... I don't know..." she whispered. Then a swirl of silver beams wound its way around Link, Marissa, and Navi. Streams of yellow, green and blue were wrapping into the silver, and there was a flash of white light for about ten seconds. Marissa couldn't see a thing. They were obviously being transported somewhere. When the light finally faded away, they found themselves in a small chamber. In the center were the three sacred triangles, forming the Triforce. At the three vertexes of the Triforce tiled on the floor were stands, a different symbol on each one. In the center triangle of the Triforce, there was a larger gold stand with a pyramid-like structure mounted on it. The four sides to the pyramid were open, and inside was an inscription engraved on all the sides. In the center, was a flat surface. Link and Marissa slowly wandered around the room without speaking. The walls were silver and gold stained glass, and there were statues of what looked like the three great fairy goddesses, Farore, Din, and Nayru on the walls of the circular room. "Link... where are we...?" Marissa asked. "I have no idea... somewhere between both worlds...?" "Look! The symbols on these stands match the engravings on the three jewels..." Marissa pointed. Link walked over to her, and held up the Sapphire of Hope. It had the exact same crest on it. The two raindrop- shaped halves with decorations inside matched perfectly. "I guess it must go here..." he concluded, placing it down, into the barely visible indenture on the waist-high column. They went to the next one. The symbol on the front of the resting place was a heart, with a six-pointed star in the center. It matched the design on the Ruby of Love. Marissa took it from Link, and set it inside the rounded bottom. She then followed him to the last stand, and watched him place down the jewel with the swirled leaf pattern; the Emerald of Life. Then, with Navi floating above their heads, Link and Marissa returned back to the middle pedestal. "If I'm correct... the diamond should be here." Link said. "Well... it's not. All the jewels are in their places... shouldn't it appear or something?" Marissa questioned. Link nodded his head toward the ocarina that she was still holding. She looked at him, then back at the ocarina "Do I play it again...?" "Try it." "Wait! Link, aren't ya gonna read it?!" Navi gestured towards the inscriptions on the inside of the pyramid-structure. "Oh!" he bent closer. "Hmm... Well, it's defiantly written in the ancient language of the Hylian... oh wow! This is it! The legend! The legend of the Diamond of Eternity!" Link excitedly announced. "Read it!" Marissa urged. "Hmm... Uh, okay. I don't know if this is the beginning, but here goes. 'As the song of the wind plays with truth, the stars sparkle in the velvet sky. While the light of the moon shines with youth, she lies there and wonders why. As the hero gallops through the plains, the sun floats high in the sky. While the hoofs pound the dirt path hard, he rides and wonders why...'  
  
"How long is it...? We're wasting time... who knows what Ganon could be doing right now!!" Navi said impatiently. "Fine." Marissa brought up the ocarina and began to play the mesmerizing song again. But Link kept on reading... 'As the legendary blade destroys all sin, the chosen one, she wonders why, this blade of life, and hope, and love causes some to die. As the sacred diamond of eternity appears to her once more, playing the endless song again, will unlock and open the door...' Marissa continued to play the beautiful tune and Navi bobbed up and down next to her, starring at the pyramid. 'As emotions become confused, bewildered, the hero wonders why he cares. While the chosen one watches him with the princess, she can do nothing more than stare. As this legend states, the hero and princess are meant to be together. But that won't stop the chosen one, from praying it's not forever.' Link furrowed his eyebrows trying to comprehend what all that meant, but there was a huge beam of white light that shot up from the stand, interrupting his thoughts. There was a orb of silver beams that crackled and hissed, almost like electric currents in the center of the open pyramid. Marissa gasped in shock, and Navi was flying around wildly. Link was frozen. He couldn't believe that after so long, they would finally be able to use the Eternal Diamond. Although the legend wasn't very well known, it was true. It was all true. There was a Chosen One... a blade... life, hope, and love... and he admitted that emotions had become confused... bewildered. He did wonder why he cared... why Marissa...? The legend was about him. Marissa. And Zelda. He was the hero, Marissa the chosen one, and Zelda, the princess. But that last part... It had said that he and Zelda were meant to be together... but Marissa would pray that it's not forever... Did that mean what he thought it did? Immediately he wished he hadn't finished reading it. Now things were even more complicated. Did Marissa want to be with him...? And did that mean that he HAD to be with Zelda...? Forever...? "Link, look!" Marissa grabbed his arm. His throat went dry. He had been waiting so long to see it... and it was gorgeous. Right there before them, was the diamond. The Diamond of Eternity. 


	25. The Dark Realm

A/N ~ Alrighty, I know I messed up the chapters, posting them twice... oh well. I'm a dork. Hee hee... well it's fixed now so it won't annoy anyone anymore... (^_^) Thanks for reviewing everyone!! I feel so... appreciated.. lol! Anywho... Ganon and Zelda act weird for the next few chapters... Ganon's stupid, and Zelda's... stupid too. Heh heh.. Oh well. I laughed writing it. She's trying to stall and let Link have his surprise attack... even though she doesn't do a very good job... and the sages are really REALLY weird in this chapter. I'm sorry to everyone who like Saria... it's the stupid things that make me laugh, okay? Tee hee hee! Okay I'll shut up now, and you can read. Please keep reviewing!! (^. O) Thank you!!  
  
Disclaimer ~ Nintendo owns em, not me. But wouldn't it be cool if I did...? Mwwaa haa haa... and I don't own the Wizard of Oz... (-_-)()  
  
Chapter XXV * The Dark Realm  
  
"Hmm... Zelda, have you had any visions lately...?" Ganon questioned. He had moved the frozen princess into his new castle. He hadn't been satisfied with the old one, so he used his [stolen] dark magic to build a new, luxurious castle, filled with a great security system that would ensure that no one succeeded in breaking in. in other words, there were traps and puzzles all over the place, preventing someone from attacking him... although he could take it, alright. "No, Ganon. What do you think I am, your personal fortune teller?!" "Let's remember who's frozen in hot ice, princess." He smirked. "Oh, bite me." "Sure!" Ganon tried to bite off her ear, but then remembered she was in ice. His face rammed into it, and he screamed bloody murder. "Stupid idiot..." Zelda muttered. "Darn hot ice! Oh, it BURNS!!!" Ganon said rubbing his nose, which being the size it is, got smashed pretty badly. He was having a nosebleed. "I don't think I like hot ice..." he waved his arm and flames blue fire began eating at the ice surrounding Zelda. "Oh! Brr! Chilly!!" Ganon stupidly stuck his finger in the fire. Then he quickly tried to warm it up by putting it on the hot ice. "Ow! IT BURNS!!!" he yelled again after a moment. Then to cool off his burning finger, he stuck it in the blue fire. He left it in for so long, it became numb and turned black from frostbite. "No!! Ahh!!! Now my finger will have to be AMPUTATED!!!" he cried. Now Zelda was finally free form the ice, and Ganon magically put out the cold flames. "Hmm... Okay, back in the crystal." He decided, making the familiar rose-crystal appear around her, trapping her inside. "Now, you stay here and I'll go check on all the traps so Link will die before he makes it up here to the top tower." "Link isn't going to die, Ganon. You're such an idiot. Really, Link is always gonna be able to kick your butt. When are you gonna get it through your thick skull-" "All right, already, can it. I'm leaving so you can talk to yourself. Ganon walked out, and began to descend the huge spiral staircase.  
  
* * *  
  
Link and Marissa stood gawking at the beautiful crystal. It was oddly shaped... a spiked shape with a golden Triforce engraved into the center of it. "Just think... this jewel has enough power to open a portal to the very-well protected Sacred Realm..." Link commented. "Now what?! We're not in the Sacred Realm!!!!" Navi yelled. "Hmm... Well..." Marissa reached her hand out towards it. "No, wait. Don't. What if it disappears, or something?" Link asked. "It won't." she didn't break her stare as she replied confidently. Her index and middle fingers touched the Triforce symbol. It was so smooth... her fingered brushed against the actual crystal and she was certain she felt a slight surge... of... something... power? "Link, you touch it too!" Navi ordered. "Why?" "Maybe we'll be transported!!!" "OH YEAH. Right!" Link reached out and touched his two fingers to the sparkling crystal. "The hero, and the chosen one!" Navi giggled. There was a sudden flash of light and they were now someplace else.  
  
"Oh, God Link!! Look at that!!" Marissa jumped and grabbed onto him, pointing to the massive statue behind them. It was Ganon. "Oh boy... I don't like the looks of this..." Navi said. "Navi... Marissa... I don't think we're in Hyrule anymore..." Link nervously said. (((Corny, I know. Oh well.))) "This is freaky." She added. "Really freaky." "AHH!! Look at all those possessed gargoyle things!!" Navi cried. They all stared at the gargoyle statues on the walls. The monsters had flaming red eyes that seemed to be watching their every move. "I think... I think we're in the Temple of Time..." Link stated. "But... aren't we in the Sacred Realm?" Marissa questioned. "No, I mean the Sacred Realm's Temple of Time. But since Ganon took over... he probably renamed this place, and that's why there's that statue of him." he explained. "Let's get out of here..." Marissa suggested, heading towards the door. "There's statues are just freaking me out." "Good idea..." Link and Navi didn't hesitate to follow.  
  
Outside the temple, Marissa stopped dead in her tracks. Link stepped up from behind her, and gasped. "It... it isn't supposed to look like this... is it?" she stuttered. "I don't think so..." Link shook his head. There were towers and buildings all over the place, and rolling rock mountains in the distance. All the buildings were boarded up, and some roofs had caved in. each one was in it's own bad condition, and beyond them all stood a massive castle with a visible thundercloud hovering above it. "That must be Ganon's castle..." Link guessed. "Oh no... you mean we have to go in there?!" "How else are we gonna get to him?" "Link, look! Is that what I think it is...?" Navi asked. "The Chamber of Sages!!" he announced. "Do you think we can go in?" asked the little fairy. "I don't see why not... but I don't really want to. I mean, Ruto's in there..." he sighed. "Oh, Link, c'mon. She's a sage now. It's not like she can chase you down again." "Well... okay I guess we should tell the, that we're here." Marissa followed them not knowing who Ruto was, or why Link didn't want to see her.  
  
The Chamber of Sages was a huge room with a wild floor. When they stepped down on it, the royal blue rippled and changed to black under their weight like a strange liquid. They could see a circle of people in the back of the room. Link quickly spotted Ruto. She was sitting on the throne crested with the Water Medallion's symbol with her head resting on her hand. Saria had her back to him. She was talking. "If I could have a career, I'd wanna be a stripper!! That way I could dance to all this sexy music, and try to seduce people!!!" she was saying. "That's... uh... and *unusual* job to be interested in..." Nabooru noted. "I wouldn't mind being a love slave for-" "LINK!!!" Ruto jumped up. "Yeah, that would be GREAT, but I'd also like to be a love slave for- " "Oh, Link! I'm so glad you're here to save me from Ganon!!" Ruto cried jumping down, and running over to him. "Ruto, get back here!" Rauru yelled. "It could be a trick!!" "You think I wouldn't know my own fiancé?!" she shouted back at him. Immediately Marissa began cracking up. "Princess Ruto, I really uh..." "Oh, hi Link! Wassup?!" Saria finally turned around and looked at him. He eyed her, remembering what she had just said about love slaves. "Is that really you, brother?!" Darunia asked. Link nodded. "Ganon certainly did a job on all those buildings down there..." "Yes. Before he came, the Sacred Realm was a beautiful place... it was golden and full of life... the three goddesses protected the Triforce and everything was peaceful. But then Ganon invaded and made his wish on the Triforce... what else would it be but to take over the world? The Scared Realm became the dark and evil world he imagined. He's got Zelda in his castle, but he often comes here to threaten us... but I'm not afraid of him." Darunia explained. Nabooru rolled her eyes and remembered the first time Ganon had walked into their chamber....  
  
"HELLO, SAGES!!!!" he had laughed evilly. "OH NO!!! WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!!!!!!!!!" Darunia had screamed at the top of his lungs.  
  
"His castle is that huge one, right?" Link asked. "Yes." Impa answered. "We can help you. Give me your sword." "Hmm? Impa, what are you talking about?" Rauru asked. "While you were all being the insane lunatics you are, I was building up energy to help save Hyrule." She explained. "Cool!!!" Saria yelled. "Okay..." Link unsheathed the Master Sword, and let Impa take it. 


	26. Sword of Gold

A/N ~ Okay, the chapter should be fixed now. I don't think I'm gonna continue posting like... two chapters a day like I've been doing because I've really caught up a lot to where I currently am in the story. (Chapter 36) Alright, so ten more chapters. Lol. But anyway, I really need to concentrate on finishing the story too. Oh well. I'll try. Thanks for reviewing everyone! It makes me feel like the hours I spend writing messed up Zelda stories are not worthless... hee hee... well, please r/r!  
  
Disclaimer ~ I don't own any of the Zelda people, places, things, whatever.  
  
Chapter XXVI * Sword of Gold  
  
All the other sages watched as Impa made an orb of light and touched the point pf the sword to it. A golden coating crawled all the way down to the handle and it began to surge with energy and power. It glowed for a moment, then dimmed and faded slowly back to its original chrome-silver as Impa handed it back to Link. "The Master Sword is ten times as strong, now..." He took it and saw that she was right. Even by just holding it, he could feel the power it contained and knew he couldn't imagine the damage and destruction it could be capable of... and didn't want to. "Thank you, Impa." Link said. "You're welcome. Go defeat Ganon, and save Princess Zelda. With the sword powered up, you should have the upper hand... but be warned. Because I was storing this energy alone, it isn't permanent, it should last long enough for you to find your way through his castle and to the top tower, where he's waiting with the princess. You must destroy him before the power fades away." she warned. "Don't worry your silly little weasel butt, Impa... my fiancé, Link, won't have any problems finding and beating up Ganon!" Ruto said, draping her arms around Link's shoulders. Marissa gave the Zora a dirty look. "Uh... look, Princess Ruto... I never... um... well, we can't be engaged, because you're a sage." He blurted out. "Linkie, what in the world are you talking about?! No one ever said anything about sages not being able to get married..." "Oh. Well, Ruto, if we did get married, we'd rarely be able to see each other. That's what I mean." "We can always... uh... hmm... you may have a point there... oh, I got it! Now listen, Link. When you go back to Hyrule, get some paper and make signs that say, 'Help wanted - Sage of the Water Medallion' and put them all over the place, okay? Then someone else can take my place as a sage!" "Uh, sure thing, Ruto." Link nodded. "Ruto, like anyone can quit being a sage to begin with... you're so childish." Nabooru told her. "Oh, shut it, Nabooru! You're just jealous that you're not engaged to someone as hot and steamy and sexy as Link! Be nice, and maybe we'll invite you to the wedding." Ruto glared are her. "OKAY, I gotta go now!" Link shoved Ruto off him, and grabbed Marissa's arm and dashed out of the Chamber of Sages.  
  
"Holy crap... now I know why you don't like Ruto... she's obsessive." Marissa commented. "And crazy!!" Link added. They both laughed. "So we're going to Ganon's castle now, right?" she asked. "Yup. C'mon." Link started walking. "Now, since this is Ganon's castle, stay close to me because it's most likely pretty dangerous inside. Dangerous as in traps everywhere. Dangerous as in life threatening. We don't really want to get killed." He was saying. "Don't worry... I'm not gonna go running off. At least I don't plan to." "Well DON'T. Really. Please." Link begged. "Don't worry! I won't. Really." "Good." "Trust me." She added.  
  
The group kept on walking. "These houses are so... bad looking... it looks like they've all been torched, or something..." Marissa noted. "Ahh haa haa!!! Do you see the FIRE?! DO YA SEE IT???!!!" Navi suddenly screamed. "Ahhh! Pyro!!" Marissa laughed. "I guess the Sacred Realm was a really beautiful city before Ganon got here... people must have lived here, then." Link said. "So did they just... disappear?" asked Marissa. "I don't know... hey, Navi. What do you think happened?" "I dunno. Maybe Ganon ate them." She answered, "Navi, since when is Ganon a cannibal?!" Link asked. "I dunno, maybe he didn't want to be a vegetarian." Marissa laughed. "I think I'm looking forward to seeing this crazy guy..."  
  
* * *  
  
"All right, Zelda. Beat THAT." Zelda moved the rook to the edge of the board and captured the king. "Checkmate." "WHAT?! How did you... you must have cheated!!!" Ganon yelled, studying the chessboard. "You dirty little..." "Oh, calm down, Ganon. It's only a silly game." Zelda giggled, leaning back in her chair. He had allowed her to come out from her crystal to play a game of chess while they waited impatiently for Link to show up. "Hmp. I don't care what you say, I know you cheated!!" "Whatever," she shrugged. Ganon growled evilly, and shoved the board and all the pieces onto the floor. As Zelda bent down to pick them all up, she sighed and said, "Why must you be so violent?" "Because I can!" he snarled. "Don't question me!" "Well what do you wanna do next...?" Zelda hoped he wouldn't force her back into that stupid crystal. "Cribbage." He answered. "Oh boy! That's my favorite card game!" she stood up and sat back down in her chair. "I'm very good at it. And I'm going to win!!!" he laughed, ripping a deck of cards out of nowhere. He began shuffling them in all these fancy ways to show of his skills. "Super-shuffling-skills, Zelda. You like?" "Uh... it's okay, I guess... but can you stick seventeen green rupees up your nose?" "What?! Who's the freak of nature who can do that?!" "Link." "Oh. Well, go figure." He shrugged. He dealt the cards and they began to play.  
  
* * *  
  
"I have such a bad feeling about this..." Marissa nervously said as they approached the front doors. "Link, I'm scared!!" Navi blurted out. "Me too, Link." Marissa readily agreed. "I guess we all are then... but neither of you have to fight that monster..." he sighed. "I know... but you're the one with all the cool items, remember? Plus... you're the *Hero of Time*!" she laughed. "I'm just the Chosen One!" "Yeah, but I'm still nervous. I mean, Ganon is like, ten times stronger this time around." "That's why Impa made your sword ten times stronger." she joked. "Yeah... well, we've gotta protect the Triforce... and Hyrule." Link reached out to the door's handle, and slowly closed his gloved hand over it. Cautiously, he began to pull the heavy door open, revealing the room beyond. 


	27. The First Door

A/N ~ Finally, in Ganondorf's castle... thank you sooo much everyone for reviewing!! I luv you! (^_^) I hope you like this next chapter... things get deeper while they're in Ganondorf's castle. And Ganondorf and Link act a lil weird here. My strange sense of humor took over again... (^_^)() Oh, and I have to thank Dazzle, who reviewed and gave me the best idea for the ending. Last night I was lying in bed putting it all together, and I have my ending because of her. Thank you!!! (^___^) Anyway pppllleeeaaassseee r/r!! Thanks!!!  
  
Disclaimer ~ Nope, I don't own any of the Zelda peoples.  
  
Chapter XXVII * The First Door  
  
"They're here." Ganon stood up. "Oh, no! Look! Great job, Ganon!!" Zelda said. "You knocked all the cards all over the place!" "SHH!!" he yelled. "It's ONLY a game!" he imitated her. "Anyway... that's annoying bug is here!" "BUG?! WHERE?! AHHHHHHH!!!" Zelda screamed and jumped on top of the table. "No! I'm referring to LINK!!" "Oh. WHERE?!" she hopped off the table. "Here! He's in the castle! I can feel it..." "Oh boy! Now I'm gonna be rescued!!" "No... I'm gonna kill him before he can save you! MWWAA HAA AHH HAA HAA!!!" "You'll never be able to beat him! Never! NEVER!!!" "Whatever. Hey, lets play charades!" "Okay!" "But first I have to talk to Link on the loud speaker... thing."  
  
* * *  
  
Link stepped in, and shut the door behind them. Navi had come out from his hat and was floating close to Marissa. In front of them was a dark red carpet and two rows of flaming torches, creating an aisle for them to walk down. "Wait, I don't get this... there's no way to go! The carpet leads to a dead end!" Marissa pointed to the wall. "Hmm... Or does it?" he walked up to it. Then he took out a purple lens with red spikes at the top, and peered through it. "Yup. I was right. C'mere, Marissa. You'll appreciate this..." She came over and Link grabbed her wrist. He held it up and pushed it into the wall. "Link, what are you-" she gasped. "Why... wait, I don't get this." "It's a fake wall. See?" he held the Lens of Truth up for her to see. "Wow... so... you can just walk right through!" she stepped through the wall, and Link followed with Navi. The next room had a picture of the Triforce in the center of the floor. There were three doors at the end of the room, each with a lock. "Hmm... Looks like we're gonna need a key..." he sighed. "Stay back." Link walked into the room and unsheathed the sword. He checked the ceiling and walls, but found nothing. He kept looking and even checked over the entire chamber with the Lens of Truth. "There's nothing here. None of Ganon's monsters... no hidden switches that'll trigger a treasure box... I have no idea how to open the doors." Link finally sighed. "But Link! What about-" "Not now, Navi..." Link leaned against the wall, his chin resting on a closed hand. "But the-" "Not now!" "LINK! You're forgetting all about-" "NAVI!!! Can't you see I'm busy thinking of away to get in?!" "But Link! Remember-" "I'm not listening right now, Navi. This is important. Can't it wait until we get inside the room?!" "NO!!!!!!!!!" Navi screamed as loud as she could. That was pretty loud, too. "What is it then?!" he demanded. "You're forgetting all about that weird looking key you found way back before we got the Ruby of Love! When we were in that maze!!" "What k- ohh!!! I remember now! Thanks, Navi!" Link fished the oddly shaped key from his pocket and held it up. "Now let's see..." he walked over to the first door and put the key inside the lock. It wouldn't turn. "Hmm...." Link tried the middle door. It still wouldn't turn. "Let's hope this one opens..." he tried the key in the left door's keyhole. "Yes! Here we go..." he pulled open the door and stepped in.  
  
"Uh... well, lead the way, Link!" Marissa nervously said. There were spiked razor blades flying across the floor in every direction. "Fear not!" he shouted, his hand at his waist, the other pointing into the air. "The love of the great fairy goddess Nayru will protect us from all evil!!!" "What's he been smoking...?" Marissa whispered to Navi. "I dunno," she shrugged. Link pulled Marissa closer to him and he took out a crystal with a blue sphere inside. He held it up and yelled, "Nayru's Love!!" They were surrounded inside a dome of transparent blue and then it flared out, shaping the dome into a jewel-like structure. "Hurry! As long as we're inside, we're protected! Stay close and follow me!!" Link directed. He grabbed onto Marissa's wrist and Navi flew into his hat. He started running through all the sharp double-edged blades. They soon came to a spiral staircase with razors flying all over the place. Link nearly had to drag Marissa up all of them because she was going too slow. "HURRY!!" he cried, speeding up. Their footsteps pounded on the steps as they kept climbing. Finally, they got to a second level. More spiked blades. This time, there was a switch in front of all the razor-madness. Link saw the barred door at the other end. "Let's go!" he yelled, yanking Marissa forward. He sprinted to the switch. Stomping down on it, he realized it was rusted. 'No!!' he thought. He growled, and pulled out the Megaton Hammer. "Watch out!" he told Marissa, throwing the heavy hammer up in the air and then slamming it down on the switch. "What the..." Link mumbled when the button when down but popped back up when he removed the hammer. "Oh no!!" he frantically looked around. "There! C'mon, hurry Marissa! Help me, here!" They ran over to a small statue. "Pull it!" he yelled, beginning to push on one side. Marissa stopped looking at all the razor blades that she was able to walk through and grabbed onto the horns of the statue and pulled. They finally moved it on top of the switch even though Link, who was a lot stronger, had done most of the work. He saw the blue shield of light was flickering. "No!!" he yelled, letting go of the statue. "Marissa!!!" Link screamed and grabbed onto her arm. The shield began to flicker faster and faster. If it vanished while they were running through the spiked razors they would have their feet cut off!! They could always sue Ganon, but that wouldn't get their feet back. He bolted to the door that was now open, but he still wasn't fast enough. Marissa cried out and he was sure the light had disappeared. Link wasted precious moments turning around only to see she was fine. They were so close... he knew they weren't going to make it. He could heat her screaming as the blade cut through her flesh and bone... even before it happened. So close... Link threw himself forward and pulled Marissa with him. They went flying across the huge area of blades that they hadn't run through. The second they were off the ground, the blue shield was gone.  
  
Link felt himself hit the ground hard. Then he heard Marissa cry out. 'No!!' he thought. 'Why didn't I let her go in front?!' "SHIT!!!" she yelled, grabbed her ankle and sitting up, while Link scrambled to his feet and forced himself to look at her. He expected to see blood. He did. But not nearly as much as he had expected. "Oh, Marissa! Thank the goddesses!! You're feet are still attached!!" Link cried. "I know, but it feels like they aren't!" she said through gritted teeth. "Okay okay, calm down." he said. Link waited until they stooped panting. He reached out and took her hand off her ankle. He saw it was trembling and her palm was stained with blood. He looked at her cut ankle. The gnash looked pretty deep. Lucky it was on the side. If it had been the back, it would have hit a small artery. "It's deep..." he said. Marissa looked at him and there was a moment of silence. He cleared his throat and slowly turned his head to look at Navi behind him. He took out his pack of items and pulled out the extra Zora Tunic. "Here..." he ripped off the sleeve and put the blue piece of fabric on her wound. Link pushed down until it looked like the bleeding had stopped. Then he tied the material around her ankle tightly and helped her up. "C'mon." he motioned towards the open door. She followed him in with Navi close behind. 


	28. Link's Warning

A/N ~ Okay, chapter 28 is up! Ganon talks to think with the speaker things, and he acts REALLY REALLY weird. Don't say I didn't warn ya! (^. O) hee hee... anyway, please read/review!! Thanks!  
  
Disclaimer ~ No, I don't own any of the Zelda characters and because I said this, you can't sue me!!! Nya!!! (^_^)  
  
Chapter XXVIII * Link's Warning  
  
"GRRRR!!!" Ganon yelled. "This stupid speaker isn't working!!!" "Um... Ganon..." Zelda walked over to him. He was standing in front of a small machine that was hooked up to hidden speakers all over the castle. "Ganon, did you ever think of plugging it in...?" Zelda pick up the plug and shoved it into the outlet next to the machine. "Oh. Right. Heh heh..." he nervously laughed. "Alrighty, now. Zelda, do you have anything that you would like me to say to Link?" "Uh, sure! Tell him that he's got to be brave... and that we're in the top tower... and that I can't wait to see him and Navi again... and-" "Okay okay, you can say all that yourself. Just hang on." Ganon tapped the microphone. "Testing, testing! One two three!!" he said. "Hello, is this thing on?" then the microphone squeaked extremely loudly.  
  
"Ahhh! What is that?!" Link yelled, covering his ears. "Oh, God, that is loud!!" Marissa cried. "Hello... hello boys and girls! Welcome to my evil mansion castle place! This is your evil king enemy speaking! Link, I'm not surprised you and your liceball of a fairy made it into the realm... but that is as far as you will get!!! This is no longer the Sacred Realm! It is the Realm of DARKNESS!!! WAAAA AHAHA HAHAA HAAA!!!! I have your STUPID princess up here at the top tower, waiting for her knight in shinning armor... or in this case, a green rag... to come and rescue her." "YEAH?! Well at least my cape isn't part of a rug!!!" Link yelled. Ganon just laughed. "And now, a few words from Zelda..." "Link?" she began. "Oh, Link! Please hurry! Ganon is TORTURING me!! We're at the top tower! And beware all his traps! The black room! Oh Link, please be careful! The only way to destroy the dark demon is to use it's own attack-" "OKAY I THINK THATS ENOUGH, ZELDA!!!" Ganon grabbed the microphone away from her. "AHEM... yes. So, Link... good luck. Oh, and I will give you this one warning... be very careful. VERY careful..." he began laughing. "MMWWAA HA HAAA HAAH HAHH HA-COUGH-HACK-COUGH-GAG!!!" he began choking and he had to read around and smack himself on the back. Then, clearing his throat, he said, "This is red falcon signing off. Peace out!!"  
  
Marissa looked at Link, her eyebrows arched. "You mean... HE'S the guy who's trying to take over Hyrule?! He's out of his mind! Red falcon?! PEACE OUT?!?!" she burst out laughing. "It's true... he's a complete fool... but he's got part of the Triforce, while Zelda and I have the other two, and he's always wishing for more and more power..." Link explained. Marissa laughed. Now they took a look around them. There was a small treasure chest inside a circle of torches. Link gazed around, quickly making sure it was safe to proceed. He led the way up the steps and to the chest. He kicked the latch open, and pulled out a small, oddly shaped key. It looked much like the one that had first opened the door. (((Actually, it looks more like the weird freaky funky key from that movie, 'What Lies Beneath'))) Marissa looked at the key, then back to Link. "Think it'll open one of those other two doors back there?" "Yeah... I do." Suddenly, there was a brilliant flash of red light and they stood in the center of the Triforce crest on the floor. The trio was back in front of the three doors. "Pick one." Link offered Marissa. "Um..." she bit her lip, and then pointed to the door on the left. She smiled and said, "That one." Link tried the key and the door opened. Navi flew in first, and then screamed bloody murder in her high-pitched shrill fairy voice. Link shut the door, and hushed her. "SHUT UP Navi!!!!!!! WHAT IS IT????!!!!" "Re... re... re... re... RE... ah, Link! It's the REDEAD!!! BRAIN SUCKING ZOMBIES!!!" Navi choked out. "Ohhhh my God... I don't like the sound of that... I rrrrrreeeaalllyy don't like the sound of that..." Marissa whimpered, her throat tightening. "There are some things I really really hate... zombies are one of them..." "Shh..." Link had his finger pressed to his mouth. They stood until their eyes adjusted to the light... until they could clearly see the eerie glow of the greenish walls... until they could see the dark figures standing before them, lined up like they were troops preparing to attack. Link looked at them. So did Marissa. There was a scream. The army began closing in.  
  
* * *  
  
"Well, I think that was very helpful. Link is scared. My traps are gonna scare those Koroki boots right off his Hylian feet!!!! What did you think of it, Zel'?" Ganon asked her. "I've asked you before, Ganon. Please don't call me 'Zel'! I'm royalty, after all. How dare you refer to me, a princess, nonetheless, the princess of Hyrule in such a crude manner?!" "Because I'm the bad guy!!! I'm supposed to... heh heh heh!" he chuckled. "Whatever, you pig." "Hey! I don' like that word!" "Whatever?" "No! Pig!" "Oh." "Oh, hey!! I figured out the word!!" Ganon blurted out after a short pause. "Go ahead. You'll never get it, though." "Corn beef!!" "Nope." The two were now playing hangman. Charades had gotten boring and Zelda suggested they play something else. "I don't know!!! GRRR!!" "Do ya give up?!" she asked. "No... err... um... chlorine!" "Nope." "Cheese!" "No." "Conveyer belt!" "Nope." "Compact disc!" "Guess again." "OOOHHH!!! I GIVE UP!!!! Darn you, Zel'!" "The word is... Coracala!" "WHAT THE HELL IS CORACALA???!!!" Ganon demanded. "A game." "How come I'VE never heard of it?!" "Because it's the password in a book I've read." "Then how the HELL am I supposed to guess it if I've never even heard it before?!?!" She shrugged. "I dunno." Ganon slammed his fist down on the table. "Zelda. May I ask you something?" "I don't see why not..." "WHY ARE YOU SUCH AN IDIOT???!!!" "I dunno!!" she giggled, trying to piss him off even more. After all, she was only trying to waste time and distract him... that way, when Link came... he'd be able to hit him with a surprise attack." 


	29. Living Dead

A/N ~ Okay, now that ff.net it WORKING again... I can post this chappy. Lol! Not much is different... they see Redead, one of my least favorite enemies... (I hate the Wall Masters so much it's not even funny... ::shivers::) anyway, please r/r! Thanks!!  
  
Disclaimer ~ No, I don't own any of the Zelda characters.  
  
Chapter XXIX * Living Dead  
  
Now they were all screaming. Screaming and closing in on the two who stood back to back. They couldn't move. Couldn't blink. Couldn't think. Couldn't breathe. Marissa's eyes were locked on the sunken faces of the monsters. They were coming closer... going in for the kill. That's what they were going to do. Kill. "Link..." she finally choked out. "I... I can't move..." "We're locked in their stare... now we can't move until they attack..." he whispered. "I'm scared, Link..." "When it jumps to tackle you, run for it..." His eyes searched the chamber. Another spiral staircase. It led up again. "Run to the steps." He tensed up more, if it was even possible, when he realized that although back-to-back, he was holding Marissa's hand. She didn't seem to know. Or did she? Her skin was cold. Ice cold. He focused his eyes back on the Redead. It wouldn't be much longer. They were so close. He felt his heat beat rising. They seemed to be moving quicker. Faster. He felt Marissa pull her hand away. She bolted under the air bound zombie and raced for the staircase. Link reached for his sword and yanked it out. Slicing it through the air and all around him, he ran. One stopped in front of him and he rushed to slice it out of his way. Just as the blade entered the rotting flesh, another jumped on his back and Link cried out. He felt the monster's waxy mouth dig into the back of his neck. His energy was being drained. The golden sword slashed this way and that in his attempts to break fee of the zombie's deadly hold. The smell of their dried-up bodies was making him sick... They seemed to be everywhere... more and more were gathering around, preparing to attack him when it was their turn. The life being pumped from his body, Link threw the sword upward. It dug into the sunken face of the Redead and it let go immediately. He dashed forward. Sprinting to the spiral staircase, Link saw Marissa standing at the bottom. So far, both of the doors had led to tests of speed. He wondered what the next one might be. Link reached the first few steps, panting. He took out the Ocarina of Time, and carefully played a song. "The Sun's Song..." Navi announced. When Link ended the tune, they heard more of the shrill screaming. All the Redead freezing up, their waxy skin turning a pale gray. Link let out a sigh of relief, and turned to Marissa. "There. They're all frozen." "Good..." she shivered. "C'mon." he said quietly. They turned their backs on the frozen dead bodies and began walking up the steps. They were both silent. The two were walking slowly, and the staircase seemed to go on forever. Footsteps echoing, Marissa opened her mouth to say something, but stopped. They had reached the top and a wave of heat spread over her body. It was so hot... "Alright... lava." Link announced. "How are we gonna get across this...?" Marissa asked slowly. "I dunno." He sighed. Before them was a wall-to-wall sea of lava. It oozed with bubbles popping from the heat. At the end of the lake was the doorway that led to the next room. "I think I have an idea..." Link murmured. He fished though his collection of items and pulled out the crystal fairy spell that Varo, Navi's mother had given to him. Holding it up, he yelled, "Varo's Ice!!!" there was a white ray out light that shot out from the crystal like a thunderbolt. It touched the boiling lava, and it froze to ice. "Hurry! It's not a great fairy spell, so it won't last long!" It seemed like Link was always grabbing Marissa and pulling her forward. For the millionth time, he took her wrist and began running. In no time at all, they had safely made it across the floor of ice. But on the other side, they could see the lava beginning to eat at the ice. It began cracking. The heat was building too much pressure up. They watched the lava consume the ice and it sunk in large chunks until all of it was gone. Marissa was the one to turn around and lead the way into the next room, this time. It was the same as the room before... a small treasure chest inside a circle of flaming torches. Link ran to kick it open. He was rewarded with another key of the same odd design. "One more door left..." he told Marissa.  
  
The trio was warped back to where they had started in the center of the Triforce engraved on the floor. Navi twittered after Link as he started towards the middle door; the only one locked. He inserted the key, turned right, then left, and pulled it out. Link looked over at Marissa who was staring down at the lock, anticipating the door's opening. She had come such a long way... from refusing to follow, to leading the way. He admired that. Link blinked. Why had he just admitted that so easily? Remembering that one line from the legend, he shook his head and pushed the final door open. "As emotions become confused, bewildered..." 


	30. Log Rolling

A/N ~ Okay, the song Zelda and Ganon are signing is Insatiable, by Darren Hayes. If you've never heard it, GO DOWNLOAD IT OFF KAZAA OR SOMETHING!!!!!!!!!! It is THE best song!!! Lol! Okay, anyway, this is an odd chapter... oh well. please r&r! Thanks!!!! (^_^)  
  
Disclaimer ~ I do not own anything that has to do with Zelda or Darren Hayes!  
  
Chapter XXX * Log rolling  
  
"Whhheeeennn moonlight crawls along the street... chasing away the summer heat... footsteps outsiiiiide, somewhere below, the world revolves I've let it go..." Zelda was belting out along with Ganon, who was singing in his raspy voice. The two became so bored that they actually turned to Ganon's old karaoke machine. Now they were doing a duet. "And allllll I have to do is hold you... there's a racin'... within my heeeaarrrtt... and I am barely touching you..." they sang together. Zelda was desperately wondering what had possessed her to choose this, of all songs. After all, it was about two people having sex! And what made it so much worse... was that she was singing it with Ganon. "Turn the lights down low... take it off, let me show... my looovvee for yyooouu insatiable..." 'Oh well...' she thought while singing. 'At least he's not hurting anyone... physically...' she added. She was counting down the seconds until Link came. And if Ganon hadn't ripped that stupid microphone out of her hand... she could have finished her warning to Link. The dark room... if only...  
  
* * *  
  
This time, Link and Marissa stood before a pool filled with water. The bottom, they could see, was swarming with chomping oysters, ready to bite off someone's finger if it was poked into their habitat, with the occasional metal spiked sea urchin here and there. They were compacted into small balls, waiting to attack. Two monsters that were equally as dangerous, and almost always found together. Floating atop the zoo of clams and urchins were a number of wide logs. "Please don't tell me we have to cross those logs..." Marissa sighed. "This looks pretty dangerous..." Link added. "Let me go first." He put his sword back in its sheathe, and steadied his balance. Stepping slowly onto the first of five logs, he held his arms out, standing straight. The chunk of wood sunk down a bit, and Link tensed up. He stretched out his leg, and moved to the next one. "C'mon... and be careful!" he said over his shoulder. She took a deep breath and stepped onto the first log. It bobbed up and down under her weight. Wobbling, she flung her arms out to help her balance. She followed Link until she was on the third, and he was on the fourth. He moved to the last one, and then leapt to solid ground, as Marissa stepped to the fourth. She moved her arm in front, and stumbled forward. Losing her balance and control, she quickly jumped to the final log and nearly fell into the water. She cried out and one foot touched the solid floor. It slipped. Link lunged forward and grabbed onto her arm. He pulled her back before she could fall into the water. She stumbled again and fell into him. Link took her shoulders, and gently pushed her up. "You okay?" "Y... yeah." She quickly stood up, embarrassed. "Sorry..." "Don't be." He smiled. She stood there for a moment, while he started up the final spiral staircase. She smiled after him, and quickly walked faster to catch up. This time, she didn't force herself to hide it.  
  
At the top of the stairs, the final challenge was before them. Then, they could move to the next level, after the three doors. Again, there was a pool filled with deadly monsters, but only one log. "I hope we don't have to cross... with that ONE log..." Link muttered. "Link, be careful! You know what you have to do..." Navi sighed. "I know..." he answered. "C'mon Marissa... we have to roll the log to the other end... while we're on it." "I figured..." she walked closer to the water. "Wait!" Link pulled out his bow and arrows. Aiming a flaming arrow at the unlit torch in the left corner, he shot it. After a second shot for the torch on the right side, the door at the other end opened. "Hurry!" he stepped onto the log, and leaned forward. It tipped. They both stepped forward to stay on. It kept rolling, slowly at first, then faster and faster. Marissa did her best to keep up with Link but this was certainly something she had never done before. She didn't want to go too fast... they might fall off... "Careful..." Link warned, showing her the log was crooked. She walked faster to try to even it out, but it wouldn't work. "We're almost there..." Link was trying to slow down, but couldn't. He had gone too fast and now it wouldn't stop. When he saw how close they were, he knew they had to get off or else it would collide and they would tumble off. "JUMP!!!" he shouted, leaping off the chunk of wood. Marissa jumped the instant Link told her to. She landed next to him, on her feet. "Quick!" he pulled her into the next room as the door closed behind them.  
  
"I cannot believe we did that..." Marissa began. "I told ya Ganon's castle is dangerous!" Link laughed. "Look!" Navi flew out of Link's hat and up to a small button in the center of the room. Link and Marissa ran after her. "That's all that's here?" Link asked, looking at the button. "Look's like it... c'mon, push it." Marissa urged. Link stomped his foot down on it, and stood there. The walls began to rumble and they shook along with the ground underneath them. "Liiiink..." Marissa's voice shook. She ran closer to him when the shaking didn't stop. Then, there was a flash. The white light swallowed them, and faded away. 


	31. Eye for an Eye

A/N ~ So... exhausted... Disneyland... feet... fall... off... ow... ow... chapter... 31... up... please... read... review... ::passes out::  
  
Disclaimer ~ Nope I don't own anything that is Zelda or has to do with Zelda.  
  
Chapter XXXI * Eye For An Eye  
  
"I guess we're back where we started..." Navi announced. They were dropped off in the center of the Triforce back in the room with the three doors. "Where do we go from here...?" Marissa asked. "There's always a trick... we just need to-" Link was interrupted by a loud humming. "What's that?!" Navi cried. They began moving upwards. The Triforce piece part of floor began to levitate, bringing them upwards like an elevator.  
  
It rose into a massive room with two huge statues. When the Triforce met with the upper room's floor, the humming stopped. "Those are... REALLY... BIG..." Marissa said, staring up. "Ganon..." Link whispered. The two statues were of Ganon. They stood at least 100 feet tall, and towered over the two on the floor. "There are no stairs..." Link observed. "Hey, Link..." Marissa called. She had wandered over to a plaque on a large stone between the two statues. "I think you'd better come see this..." "What?" he broke his stare at the ugly face of the monstrous statue and ran over to her. "What's it say?" she asked as Link began to study the Link of ancient Hylian writing. "Eye for an eye..." "What?!" "That's what it says. Eye for an eye." "Okay... what'd you think it means...?" "I dunno... maybe something to do with the statues..." he guessed. "Probably!" she laughed sarcastically. "Hmmmm..." Link stepped back a bit and looked at both statues. First, the one on the left, and then the right one. A couple moments later, he declared, "Yes. Okay, I think I know what I means." "What?" "An eye for and eye... look. That statue is missing an eye." Link pointed to the statue on the left. The red eye was missing, Marissa saw. "So... we move one of the eyes to that statue?" she pointed to the empty eye socket. "Exactly." Link smiled and added, "I think you're getting good at this." Marissa smiled back at him. It hurt him to turn away from her happy face and pull out his hookshot. He walked over to the statue on the left, and looked up. Ganon's head was so high... he began searching for a spot to shoot the hookshot. Ganon's folded arms. They looked like they had a texture that the hookshots speared-end could grasp onto. He aimed, and shot, and sprung up into the air.  
  
Marissa watched as Link's body went flying upward. He safely landed on one of Ganon's arms that were folded across his chest. 'Ganon must be pretty full of himself to have two massive statues of himself in his own castle... but on the other hand, they are part of the puzzle that needs to be solved...' she thought to herself. Now Link was flying up to Ganon's shoulder. 'He really is strong...' She recalled the first time he had pulled her up on Epona and she had had her first sensation of his strength. He was powerful... yet gentle. There was so much more to him than his role as a hero... he was just a normal person... despite his unheard-of race... at least, in her world... He could defiantly be stubborn at times... but so could she. He was fun to be with... once she got to know him. She had told him he didn't even know her... That seemed so long ago now. Really, only a few days. But the next night... it was like they had known each other forever the way they had been playing around. 'Playing around?' she questioned. Had they really just been playing around? She had felt it... at least, she thought she had... but what did he really think? Did Link even care? She couldn't believe how her opinion of him had changed so drastically. Would she miss him? She knew the answer to that... but wasn't going to admit it. Not now. Not yet... In her heart she knew.  
  
Link hookshotted to a barely-visible platform in front of one of Ganon's eyes. It wasn't even big enough for both his feet to fit on it. He balanced himself and turned to look at the glass eye before him. It rested inside a larger black circle. Cautiously reaching inside, Link closed his hand over the crimson sphere. He retracted his arm, taking Ganon's fiery eye from its home. He turned slowly and looked across to the second statue. Seeing the tiny platform under the eye, he aimed the hookshot, and went flying over.  
  
Marissa, still down below watching with Navi, was amazed at how skilled Link was with his trusty hookshot. "Navi... how'd be get to be so good at that?" she questioned, not taking her eyes off him. "I don't know... he was just born with it, I guess!!" "Heh. Maybe..." she grinned. "He's destined to save Hyrule... he's a hero... heroes have those talents..." Navi continued. "He's a great one." This comment pleased Navi. She knew it. Marissa did have a soft side... deep down. She wasn't a stubborn brat. "Yeah, he is." She agreed. Startled by a familiar humming sound, Marissa jumped. She looked up at Link, and saw that he had inserted the red sphere into the empty stone eye socket. He was looking down at her. Jumping first down to the shoulder, then to the arm, and finally he had to hookshot down to the top of Ganon's foot, and he was finally down. Marissa realized the Triforce floor piece was about to leave without them. Inches above the ground, she ran over to it, yelling, "Hurry, Link!!" He leapt off the toe of Ganon's boot, and sprinted to the rising Triforce. It was at his neck when he reached it. Marissa threw both hands down, and helped him climb on. Link sat down, and let out a sigh of relief. "Close one..." Marissa sighed too. 


	32. The Dark Room

A/N ~ Chappy 32! Yay! (^_^) This one has a serious Zelda/Ganon scene, which is something that hasn't happened in this fic yet. Hee hee! Anyway, please read/review!! Thanks soooo much!  
  
Disclaimer ~ Nope... but I won the dark room... heh hah haha hah hahaa!!!!  
  
Chapter XXXII * The Dark Room  
  
Zelda watched the anger grow in Ganon's fiery eyes, as the fear grew in her own. "Foolish girl." He spat through gritted teeth. "How dare you question my powers..." he stepped closer, backing her into a corner. "I... I..." she stuttered. It was no use now. Regretting what she had said about his power, she prayed to the Goddesses he wouldn't hurt her. "I could dominate this pathetic world.... both. The Sacred Realm and Hyrule! The Triforce makes it easy... and with it, I can remove anyone who stands in my way." There was a long moment of silence. Zelda was trembling and her face horrorstricken. She growled, angered at his determination to destroy. He slapped her. His huge hand covered half her face, and he left her with a stinging red mark. "Monster!!" she burst out. The Gerudo moved closer to her face as a tear rolled down her burning cheek. "You need to learn when to shut your mouth..." he snarled. "And I promise you this... when this world is mine; I WILL shut your mouth. Permanently." His hot breath stung her face even more than his strike. He stepped away, and went to stand before the window at the other side of the room. She slid down to the floor, and closed her eyes. Never should she have said it.  
  
"Link is getting closer... He's pretty intelligent to have come this far, " Ganon had said. She hadn't replied. "I'm looking forward to killing him..." "You're crazy to believe you'll succeed." "No, princess. I believe you are mistaken. This time around, Link is going to die." "You'll never have enough power, Ganon! When are you going to see that?!" "My power... is MORE than enough to take a life." "Then why has he beaten you so many times before?!?!"  
  
That was when she caught a glimpse of his anger. Ganon was such a cruel man... how could anyone not see how evil he was? He only wanted power... "Self-centered," she mouthed. 'Link, where are you?' she wondered. If he didn't hurry up, there was no telling what Ganon might do... especially with the power he did possess.  
  
* * *  
  
The humming came to a halt, along with the levitating Triforce as it met with the floor in the unexplored room above. The trio began looking around. They were in a small corridor. Two blazing torches created a small aisle that lead to a strange arch-shaped doorway. Link walked towards it in silence. There was no handle, so he tried pushing it open. Now Marissa was behind him, and Navi by his ear. The door began to slide upward as Link pushed. "Link, be careful... I have a very bad feeling..." "That makes two of us." Link said. "Three." Marissa added. The door opened fully, revealing absolutely nothing but black darkness. Link hesitated, but took a step forward, anyway. They all cautiously followed. When Marissa, the last one, finally came into the room, the door slide down behind her. "Link... I... I can't see a thing..." she whispered. "Where's Navi...?" he asked. "I'm right here!" she answered. "Where are YOU?!" she collided into his face. "Ow... Navi, why can't you light anything up? I mean... you're not glowing." "I don't know..." she replied nervously. "Link, didn't Zelda say something about a dark room? Or a room of darkness? Or... something?" Marissa asked. "Nayru..." Link whispered. "Do you hear that...?" They strained to hear. A steady breathing. "I have a feeling this room isn't just dark because its lacking light... I feel the presence of Ganon's dark magic!" Navi announced. "That makes sense..." Marissa worriedly agreed, nodding. "I feel the presence of something else..." Link stated. "Evil." "I feel it too..." Marissa slowly added. "Numb feeling... knotted stomach..." "Dry throat... hard to breathe..." Link whispered, continuing her list. He felt her trembling hand touch his shoulder. "I'm scared." She whispered after a pause. He put his arm around her waste, and replied, "I am too... I am too..." "Link, stay alert! I don't like this scenario one bit!" Navi interrupted. "The breathing stopped..." Marissa noted. "What's that?" Link asked a moment later. A humming... a distant humming. "Do you hear it?" he asked again. He felt her body shake as she nodded yes. "Link, it's getting louder..." Navi's voice was rising. Marissa's grip on Link's shoulder grew tighter. "It's getting closer..." he mumbled. The breathing started up again. It was increasing its volume. Link gently let go of Marissa and reached to pull out the Master Sword. Reluctantly, she pulled herself away from protection. He drew the blade and held his shield out in a ready-to-fight position. With a deep breath, he stepped forward. "Stay alert..." Navi warned again. With another step, Link immediately knew they were no longer alone. Although he could see nothing but darkness, he felt the warm breath blowing onto his face. Face to face. 


	33. Demon of Darkness

A/N ~ Whee, chapter 33! Hey, I had my first day of school today... it was scary. My first day at the new middle school here in California... I miss my old school more than ever. Lol! Oh well. Anyway, here's the next chapter... thank you to everyone who's reviewing! I love ya!!!! (^__^) Please keep it up! Hee hee!  
  
Disclaimer ~ Nope I don't own Zelda or anything else that's copyrighted.  
  
Chapter XXXIII * Demon of Darkness  
  
Link held his breath. He was praying he couldn't have to battle the unknown monster in the dark... Suddenly, there was a cloud growling. The floor beneath them shook as the silhouette of the creature came into focus. Like a shadow, it swept over him and drifted behind. The dark gray outlines of the shadow-creature were just barely visible against the darkness. That was all he could see.  
  
There was a low growl, and the creature's body rippled like water. Link's grip on the sword's handle tightens and he got ready to strike. The shadow's harsh breathing seemed to quicken. He jumped forward, swinging the sword upward. The blade sliced through the dark monster but caused no damage. Nothing happened. It just continued to ripple... "What the..." he whispered. There was a second low-pitched growl, and a quick arm swooped down. Link dodged the strike and jumped back. "Navi, what do you know about this thing?!" he asked, startled to realized she was right next to him when he heard her shrill voice. "If Princess Zelda was correct, this should be the 'dark demon'! I remember she said something like, 'The only way to destroy it is to use it's own attack...' then Ganon cut her off!" Navi finished just as Link dodged another swiping hand. "She must have meant that you need to use it's own attack against it!" she guessed. He tried slicing through the shadow a second time before he made up his mind to change strategy. After all, Zelda was probably right. Ganon, being the idiot he was, most likely told her something about the traps all over his castle. Suddenly, the shadow grunted and put an arm out in front of Link. A deep purple sphere was beginning to form. Gathering more energy Navi began to speak again. "Link, this is it! It's a dark wave!!" she cried. Link yelped as the wave shot toward him. He narrowly missed it. Then, Marissa cried out as it collided into the wall next to her. Link could still see nothing but the shadow creature's outlines and the dark wave attacks he was randomly tossing out. He feared he would step back to far and hit Marissa or crash into Navi... or anything else for that matter! Who knew what else was in the room. So he was supposed to use the monster's own attack against it... after a moment, he took out the Mirror Shield and put away his Hylian one. he held it up, his face partly hidden behind it. He saw the shadow creature prepare to fire another dark wave. Gritting his teeth, he jumped in front of the monster and crouched down. With a growl, the purple ball of light was fired towards him. He squeezed his eyes shut, praying the shield would protect him from the deadly attack. He felt it collide into the shiny shield with such an incredible force he almost dropped it. It ricocheted off the Mirror Shield and flew into the shadow demon. Link lowered the shield just in time to see the dark wave flare out as it hit the shadows dark body. It fell downward with a thud. Link drew the Master Sword from its sheathe and held it out to the side. It began to glow a light blue as it charged with fairy magic. He closed in on the creature, and just as the blade turned a dark orange, he spun around performing a spin attack. He heard the blade cut through the shadow as it let out a shrill shriek. It jumped up again, and swiped its arm down at Link. It smashed into his shoulder just as he was standing up again. He cried out, but dodged the next arm that swooped down trying to strike him a second time.  
  
Marissa was still against the wall. She cringed when she heard Link cry out in pain. That was all she could do. She could see nothing but the shadow demon's outlines and Link when he had charged up his sword. It must have given off light because it was using fairy magic. She watched as the shadow prepared for another dark wave blast. This was really the first time she had seen him fight. The spiders back in the Sapphire Temple weren't really that threatening now, especially since she had seen things like the Redead... and this shadow thing. He held the red and silver Mirror Shield up again, ready to reflect the attack. She heard it clank against his sheathe as he lifted it up. Soon they would be at the highest tower... where Ganon was. Soon Link would be battling Ganon, the king of evil... she would see Zelda again... and so would Link.  
  
If he hadn't changed... and she was almost sure he hadn't... once he was back with Zelda... she felt as though her time was limited. Soon she would be sent back to her own world, and she would never see Link again... She hated herself for letting things get this way... she didn't want to leave him. But what did it matter? He didn't feel this same. He never would... would he? She shook her head. She was human. He was Hylian. They came from two different worlds. It would never work out. But there was the way he had looked at her that night at Lon Lon Ranch... She wished she could read his mind. Then maybe she'd know what to do.  
  
Her hands clenched into fists as she heard him yell again. He must have been shocked by a dark wave. She desperately wanted to help him... but what could she do? What would he say? The next dark wave she saw hit the shield. It bounced back at the shadow and she heard Link yell as he drew his sword again and went in for the kill.  
  
He trusted the sword into the shadow demon, and it cried out with a painful gasp. Link still stood prepared to fight in case he hadn't killed it just yet. A couple moments passed, and when there wasn't any movement he sheathed the blade and turned around. He began making his way back to Marissa, keeping his arm stretched out so he wouldn't walk into her, or a wall. Suddenly, light poured into the room. The darkness faded away, revealing a huge room filled with a misty haze. Link was startled by both the light, and Marissa shouting his name and running to him from behind. He had been walking the opposite direction. "Oh, Link! You're shoulder!!" she cried. He saw the horrified look on her face and looked down at his shoulder. Marissa was gasping, her hand over her mouth. He starred at the blood stained sleeve of his tunic. It was everywhere. Blood on his white mail shirt, and all over the side of his tunic. Some of the dark crimson liquid had trickled down onto his gloves. "Oh NO, Link!" Navi flew up to his wound. "This looks awful!!" she moaned. "Oh my God... Link, doesn't it hurt...?" Marissa asked. Link realized he hadn't said anything yet. "No... But I'll bet it's going to..." 


	34. Bleeding Heart

A/N ~ Oh, this here now is a good chapter. (Lol) Yaahh... but really, it is. It's kinda... gory... but I barely survived watching The Cell, so it's nothing that serious. Trust me. Anyway, thanks sooooooo much to everyone who is still reviewing... yes, I know, I should end this pretty soon, huh...? Well I'm almost done hand writing it... (Chapter 41 to be precise... lol!) And Link is fighting Ganon. So just... bear with me... while I finish the story... hee hee! Please please PLEASE R&R!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks!!!!  
  
Disclaimer ~ At least... I think I don't own them... heh heh...  
  
Chapter XXXIV * Bleeding Heart  
  
Marissa was sitting against the wall, next to Link. Navi had forced him to peel off his tunic and mail shirt, so she could get a good look at the wound. Link couldn't stop looking at his shoulder... he didn't understand why it didn't hurt. Even with the huge chunk of flesh that had been torn from his arm, it didn't even feel raw.  
  
'Is he in shock?' Marissa wondered. How could he not feel any pain? If something like that had happened to her, she'd be sobbing like there was no tomorrow. Even now, she was holding back tears... Although she wasn't positive why. Was she just scared? Or was it more than that... It just kept bleeding...  
  
"Well, Link... I can honestly say this is one of the worst wounds you've ever gotten... it's so deep, I can even see part of your bone!!" Navi announced. Marissa cringed, but somehow forced herself to look anyway. She was shocked when she didn't become nauseous. The flesh that had been torn out revealed a few cut veins, still spewing out blood. The muscle, open to the air, had turned a bright red, and was oozing blood too. There was a patch of white, where the cut was the deepest. The bleached bone stood out against all the red flesh.  
  
Link looked at her examining his shoulder. She had changed so much... just as he had. He watched her blink as she lifted her head up. Now they were only inches apart. He starred at her eyes... before they had seemed so cold and dull... but now... what did he think he could see? Compassion...? The emerald spheres flecked with a chocolate brown starred back at him, as if she was in a trance. Again, he questioned himself. What was he doing, face to face, just starring at her like this? He still didn't move. It was as if time had moved on and left them behind. Link was almost startled when he felt his shoulder begin to throb. He decided that the feeling was beginning to return. Then he remembered he and Marissa were still locked in a stare. What was going through her mind at this moment? He wished he could tell... then maybe he'd know what to do. "Link?! What do you think you're doing?!?!" Navi demanded, her voice barely above a whisper. Marissa blinked again. He saw her eyes beginning to well up. Was she going to cry? He suddenly wondered. 'Why? What for?' "Marissa... I..." he said. She blinked again, holding back the tears. "Link, stop! You can't do this! You know it can't be this way!!!" Navi was shrieking into his ear. "I..." "Don't say it! Link, what has gotten into you?! Please! Don't say it! You'll end up hurting her! Never mind, yourself!!" Navi whined. "I... I think the feelings coming back to my arm..." he choked out finally. She drew her face back abruptly. Forcing a smile, she replied, "That's good."  
  
What exactly had she been expecting? She had learned not to get her hopes up the hard way. She was only being foolish. Maybe even selfish. She had even thought she had seen it again... that glimmer... in his eyes... Why had he been starring at her anyway? What had he seen...?  
  
Link glanced at Marissa. She had pulled her knees up to her chest and was resting her chin on them. Why had he said that?! And what had he been planning to say...? That he... loved her? Had it gotten that bad? Had it become that deep? He had ignored it... and for a reason. He knew better than to let it happen. But... No. No way. That couldn't have been it... could it? Had he really been planning to say that? He wasn't sure. He wasn't sure if he wanted to be sure. But his heart told him it was the truth.  
  
Navi was sprawled out on the floor, panting as if she had just used up all her energy. She didn't know what to think. One minute, Link hated her... refused to be nice to her... the next... She remembered when he had looked at Zelda the same way when she had told him he was going to be sent back in time, and he had begged to stay for just a while longer. But they couldn't be... not Link. Not Marissa. Not the two of them. Link loved Zelda. He always had. If it was any other way... someone would be hurt. They came from two different worlds. It just wasn't meant to be.  
  
So the three sat there against the wall, each of them sorting out their thoughts. Marissa, confused and scared, Link, bleeding and unsure. 


	35. Recover

A/N ~ Okay, moving along well... lol. This chappy is about them getting to another room. Nothing much happens... they feel awkward. Oh well. Just read the bloody chapter... Hee hee... oh, and PLEASE r/r! Thanks! (^___^)  
  
Disclaimer ~ Since you didn't see my name in any of the credits of the games, I don't own Zelda, or have anything to do with Zelda.  
  
Chapter XXXV * Recover  
  
They rested there for a while, and finally, Navi flew back up. "Link, we'd better keep going. Use the extra Zora tunic as a bandage. It should be good enough." Link nodded, but Marissa didn't look up.  
  
He moved his arm to reach into his pack of equipment, causing more blood to squirt from his slashed shoulder. When he had the azure tunic in hand, he straightened up and pressed it into his shoulder. He winced, but held back any other sings that would tell how much pain he was in. How could he have let this happen? When he had been fighting that shadow monster... He had been too careless. He hadn't even known he'd gotten hurt! If Marissa hadn't told him... he'd probably be fighting Ganon, and not be able to use his arrows... either that, or he'd have bled to death.  
  
He applied more pressure to his shoulder. He thought he was going to crush his own if he pushed any harder. Blood oozed out onto the material, staining it. Link folded it over, and pressed down again. This time, he wrapped the fabric around his arm, and forced the two ends together, knotting them. It seemed secure. Slowly, he got to his feet, and leaned against the wall, digging through his pack for another mail shirt, and tunic. He sighed, and he felt the soft material. After fishing the two out, he let his pack fall down to the floor. In a way, he felt awkward putting them on in front of Marissa. She was still sitting against the wall, her legs curled up. He pulled the mail shirt over his head, and stuck his arms through the sleeves. Once he had put on the Koroki tunic, he slid his gloves on, and equipped the shield. Swinging the sheathe over his shoulder and around his back, Navi flew up and darted into his hat.  
  
Marissa stood up, and walked over to Link. She said nothing, but looked up at him as if she wanted to. Link pulled his eyes from hers, and turned toward the door.  
  
"So what's next?" she finally asked. "We go through that door, and explore the room beyond." Link's expression broke into a smile, as he pushed the door open.  
  
* * *  
  
Impa sighed. Sometimes she hated being a Sage... the others were always being... crazy. They just didn't take it seriously, like they should. That made her angry. "...And in conclusion... that is why French toast is important!" Saria finally fished her pointless speech. "Oh, boy Saria! You sure convinced me! Next time we go to Carl's Jr.'s, that's what I'M ordering!" Princess Ruto announced. Saria smiled, while everyone else rolled their eyes. "Do you think they've mad it to Ganon yet?" Nabooru suddenly asked. "Who...?" Ruto questioned, confused. "Link!!!" Nabooru practically screamed. "Oh! I dunno... maybe. I haven't been inside his castle. Have you?" "No. Just... oh, never mind." Nabooru sighed. "Isn't there any way we can communicate with him, brother?" Darunia asked, looking at Rauru. "You think I haven't tried?" he said, not angrily, but sadly. "I've tried again and again... But Ganon has us sealed up so well." "So we have no way of knowing if Ganon's killed them?!" Nabooru demanded. "I'm afraid not..." "We're so helpless here!!" she moaned. "He'll be fine. Link knows what he's doing. He's fought Ganon before..." Ruto was saying. "And he's won before." "It's different this time. He has Zelda, her power, us sages, and our powers..." Rauru listed. They all seemed to sigh simultaneously.  
  
* * *  
  
Link led the way into the new room, Marissa and Navi one step behind him. They were each still feeling a little awkward about what had happened before, but Marissa tried to do her best to cover it up. The new room had a stone path down the center, while gargoyles poured water into the area around the strip of land. Each side had three of the ugly stone monsters. The water was cascading from their fanged mouths and flowed down the stone walls, splashing into the pool below. Link walked to the end of the oath. It ended abruptly as he looked down to see water below. The current looked rough, as the water rushed from the left side, to the middle, to the right. He started to look for a way to cross the water blocking the way to the door located at the far side of the chamber. He spotted a circular mark on the ceiling that he knew he could hook shot to. Looking at the other side of the room, he realized hookshotting there would only cause him to fall into the water. (((OMG!!! The Jehovah Witnesses just came to our door!!!! Hee hee!!))) It wouldn't bring him over far enough. So, he continued to look around, searching.  
  
"Look, Link!" Navi sprang up into the air, and flew to the middle of the room. "There are blocks up here! Play the Song of Time!!" she suggested, her voice beginning to regain its excitement. Link took out the instrument of great power, and held it to his lips. He played the mesmerizing tune, his fingers covering and uncovering the small holes, producing the sound. Rays of light broke through the solid block on the ceiling and it was transported to the space between them and the entrance to the next room. While it floated there, Link decided that hookshotting to the circle on the ceiling would bring him down onto the block-platform. It looked like he could jump to the other side from there. If not, there were two torches set aflame on both sides of the door. His plan finally completed, he turned to Marissa. "We're gonna hook shot from here to the block." She nodded. Putting away the ocarina, Link dig out the hookshot. She moved closer to him, and took a deep breath. Link put his arm around her, trying to be as impersonal as possible. Pulled her close so she wouldn't fall, she placed her hands to rest on his broad shoulders, just as he aimed, and fired the hookshot.  
  
They landed safely on the block and let go of each other quickly. Marissa knew she didn't want to make it any more awkward than it already was... Neither did Link. They both stood on the square. "I think we can make it..." he said, eyeing the distance between them and the solid ground. "Okay." Marissa took a few steps back. Link did the same. He got a running start, and sprung off the cube. His feet touched the ground, and he turned around. Marissa jumped next. She landed next to Link, and straightened up. She watched Navi dart into Link's hat as they walked up to the door. He pulled it open and they made their way into an arena-like chamber with the familiar pink bubbles drifting around, waiting to greet them. 


	36. Chamber of Chaos

A/N ~ Yaaayy! More reviews! Mwaa haa haaa!! Thanks to everyone who is reviewing... I really do appreciate it. And if you don't continue to keep reviewing... well... ::thinks::... something bad is gonna happen. Lol. Alrighty, well, anyways, here's chapter 36... chamber of chaos! Duh duhh!!! (^__^) for what it's worth, (lol) enjoy!  
  
Disclaimer ~ I've said it in so many chapters before, you think you know by now... (lol) I don't own Zelda.  
  
Chapter XXXVI * Camber of Chaos  
  
Marissa gazed around, startled at what she saw. The fiery bubbles tinted pink where everywhere. They couldn't see the ceiling, because the clusters were so large. The bubbles consumed the corners, and covered the walls like a thick blanket of watery disaster... floating darkness... after all, that's what the chaos was. The walls were a yellow stone color, appearing stained at places. The bubblegum colored spheres against the grimy stone seemed to give the room an almost eerie glow. Link began planning a way to destroy the swarming chaos. He had used the Din's Fire fairy spell to rid the Zora woman's house of the bubbles before they had gotten the Sapphire of Hope... But would it be enough to destroy all that drifted around the room? He decided it was worth a try. Taking out the crystal that held the required magic, he ran into the center of the room holding his shield up to protect him from the deadly bubbles that seemed to be ready to attack. Marissa followed Navi after Link. The fairy flew around his head, and finally stopped next to his ear. She recalled he had used the same magic spell when they had been under Zora's Domain, in the ancient city... Marissa took a step closer to him, so the flames that would spring up wouldn't engulf her. Link didn't object. After he saw her move closer, he forced himself to pay attention to the magic he was supposed to be charging up. The red sphere inside the crystal glowed, and Link held it up. With one quick movement, he bent down, and crossed his feet. Both hands were to his right, and he stood back up again, crying, "Diiiinn's... FIRE!!!" The deep red light sprung up and created a dome around the two that vanished shortly, and flared out to reach the smallest niches of the room. The fire hit the stone and hissed, as if it were trying to burn it to ashes. As soon as the fiery walls collided with the bubbles, they were disintegrated, the remains left to float around harmlessly. They army of drifting chaos was completely wiped out, thanks to Din, fairy goddess of power. The last few deadly spheres gathered in the corners, exploded as the flames pressed them against the stone. Finally, the room was completely extinguished of chaos.  
  
Link wondered why it had seemed so easy. He replaced the spell-casting crystal and turned to Marissa who had stepped away while the chaos was being destroyed.  
  
Her neck was arched. She was looking up. 'At what...?' he wondered, craning his neck so he could see too. He saw the orange beam slowly making its way closer to them. He guessed it was going to lift them upward and into the next room. It came closer, and he felt himself being pulled from the ground. Marissa was already a few feet up. "Link, We're being warped into the next room!" Navi exclaimed. He couldn't help looking up, anxious to see what was in store for them next. They continued to levitate up and finally the left the room. The new chamber before them wasn't nearly as big as the last. It was hexagonal in shape, and the six walls were a shiny silver chrome, and he noticed right away that there was no exit... at least, not one that was visible. Other than that, the room was empty.  
  
"Link... there's something else here..." Navi said, almost whispering. "Like in the dark room..." "You're right..." he commented, starring around. "There's something odd about this room... something almost... eerie..." Marissa mumbled tensely as she gazed around. "I think it's the walls..." Link whispered suddenly. "They're... moving..."  
  
The one wall in front of them seemed to tremble with every breath they took. Marissa took her eyes off of it for a second and saw that that was the only wall moving. It looked almost like liquid, the way it rippled.  
  
This time, the walls didn't rumble, and there was no flash of light. Chrome poured out from the center of the wall and onto the floor below it. More and more of the liquid-silver was seeping out and into the puddle. So much, that it looked like the room would be filled. It stopped abruptly. The silver puddle shimmered, and trembled again. More ripples. Without warning, the substance began to rise. Slowly, it formed itself into what resembled a giant insect... one with three legs on each side of its crab-like body. It had nothing that could be called eyes, just two curved fangs with pointed blade edges protruding from the sides of a gaping mouth. It began scurrying around while Link unsheathed his powered-up sword and Marissa took a step back, as her fear began to take control. 


	37. Silver and Gold

A/N ~ Oh my God!!! I'm still alive!!! Lol! Yes, I'm still here... more cruel and unusual punishment, as I'd like to put it. Oh, and I finished my fanfic!!!!!!!! (^_____^) Yup! 53 chapters, 462 pages. (I need a life, huh? Lol) Yeah. So, looks like I'll be typing for a while, huh? ::sigh:: Anyway... thanks soooo much everyone, for reviewing! I just wanna say it does mean a lot to me... and that this is a really long chapter. I don't wanna type it all but... I just have to... lol. Anyway, I think it's the longest in the whole story. Lol! Yes, ANYWAY, the crazy silver chrome monster is supposed to be something like that monster in the Terminator II: 3D in Universal Studios. I dunno if it's in FL too, but I know for sure it's here in CA, because we live here (grr!) and because we went there over the summer and saw the show and I decided to put the monster thing in. Okay. So. Please R&R!! Thanks!!!!!!  
  
Disclaimer ~ I don't own Zelda, or the monster from the Terminator II: 3D. (^__^)  
  
Chapter XXXVII * Silver and Gold  
  
Link watched the spider-like creature scurry backward, and then as it bent down slightly, prepare for attack. What was that thing?! "Navi... what is this thing...?" Link said, fear in his voice. "I wish I knew!" she was even more scared. The insect made a shrill hissing sound as it lunged forward, its front legs reaching out. Link tore the shield out and held it out in front of his crouching body, hoping it would withstand whatever the silver monster was about to throw at him. One of the bladed legs hit his shield, while the other flew up and came down at him. He made a forceful effort to roll out of the way, and he barely missed the pointed limb slicing clear through his body. With another loud hiss, the creature swiped its two sharp legs through the air. They flailed about and as Link stood up, one of them collided into him. It was enough to get him back on the ground again. This time, he sprung up quickly, and charged for the monster's face, his sword outstretched. He swung the blade horizontally at the creature's face. The sword penetrated and created a deep, long slash. With a hiss, it snapped its fangs and they stretched, going after him as he ran backward. Then, the chrome-silver filled into the thin slit. The wound vanished. Its fangs still continued to stretch, and they became longer than its legs, as they slashed around wildly. Link ran against the wall, sheathed the sword, and pulled out his bow as fast as he could. Loading an arrow, he pulled it back, aimed, and shot. The thin pointed cylinder flew through the air, and into the monster's forehead. It hissed in pain, and slashed its sharp legs around even more. The chrome silver suddenly began to cover the arrow that stuck out of its head. It was being sucked in. Link starred in a mixture of confusion and horror, as it lunged backward and stuck its back legs up against the all. It began crawling up the wall, and soon it was hanging from the ceiling. Link tensioned up, and struggled to pull out the Master Sword again, as the monster came closer. He looked up at the ceiling and decided he might be able to jump up and hit the silver insect with the blade... it wasn't that high up. He ran forward holding the sword out and jumped, just as the long chrome legs reached down to grab him. He ducked, dodging one, then leapt up, the sword pointing vertically. The tip of the blade slashed into the monsters stomach, and it hissed, scrambling to knock him down with its front legs. He jumped out of the way, just as the insect lost control and came crashing down to the ground with a loud thud. Link held out the Master Sword, and charged fairy magic into it. It charged and glowed a light blue. He remembered Impa powering it up... turning its original silver appearance to gold, then it fading back. He wondered what it would be like to fight the monsters without a powered-up weapon. He let go of his tight grip on the sword just as it turned to a deep orange, and ran up to the liquid-silver insect. Spinning around, the blade cut deeply into the monster's face, and it screamed. The creature began to glow a dark blue color, and it collapsed to the ground. Link backed away slowly, still holding out the Master Sword. He was finally next to Marissa, and she asked, "Is it... dead?" "I don't know... maybe..." "I hope so," she shivered. It suddenly scrambled up, and slashed its front legs. It exploded. It began at the tips of its legs, and fangs, than the rest of its body blew apart, leaving tiny balls of liquid to drift around the room. "Ewww..." Marissa commented, looking at the millions of liquid spheres floating. "Hold on... it's not over yet..." Navi announced. Link saw that the fairy was correct. He watched them all suddenly being pulled back into the center of the room like the tide of the sea forcing the shore back. The silver flew into clusters and grew bigger. The clusters attached and grew until there was another puddle of liquid-chrome in the middle of the floor. The substance rose up, and shaped into the same crab-spider-creature as before. Link realized it wasn't going to be easy to beat. Arrows wouldn't work, and the Master Sword did nothing... what could he use?  
  
He realized that the hookshot wouldn't be able to get sucked in. if he could stun the creature... it'd stop moving and maybe he'd be able to attack and get some damaging hits in with the sword. The monster scuttled towards him and stretched out its sharp legs, while he struggled to fig out the hookshot. He felt the sharp anchor on it and yanked it out. The legs slashed at him, and he ducked and ran to another wall. That was enough time for him to aim and shoot the weapon. The sharp anchor sped towards the liquid chrome crab-like monster. It penetrated the silver flesh with a slight groan from the creature. The end didn't go straight through, so Link held his grip on the triangle-shaped handle. He felt the slanted sides cutting into his knuckles, as he took a step forward. He reached to unsheathe the Master Sword, when the monster pulled back, forcing him forward. He cautiously moved closer, attempting to regain some control, when he noticed the chain coming from the insect's body was becoming covered in the liquid silver. He didn't have much time before the rest of the hookshot was sucked in as well.  
  
He stepped forward again, and charged up the blade, holding it out to the side. Just as it began to glow blue with fairy magic, he saw a sharp leg fly down on him. Impossible to dodge, he couldn't move in time. The leg crashed down on his arm, and he cried out as he lost control of the sword. Turning to look at it, he saw it go flying across the room. It landed with a loud clank, and continued to slide. It stopped at Marissa's foot.  
  
Link looked at her, then back to the creature. The hookshot chain was getting sucked in faster, and more of the chain was covered in the shiny liquid. He watched her bend down and study the sword. She brushed her fingers against the engraved Triforce at the base of the blade. She closed her fingers around the handle, and held the blade in the palm of her hand. Link tried to look at her, but couldn't. He strained to pull the shield over him to protect himself from the fangs that were snapping over his head, with the flailing front legs. He finally succeeded and forced the metal barrier up above him. He saw the hookshot was being covered in silver, and it was now only inches away from his hand, and he was crouching down in front of the monster. He was going to have to let go. Reluctantly, he let go of his grasp and the handle flew into the monster's body.  
  
He heard the legs and fangs pounding down, and he wondered what he could do, so close to the silver body of the monster.  
  
"Link!" Marissa shouted. He turned and saw her with the Master Sword in one hand. She threw her arm back over her head, and hurled the blade through the air. She had put somewhat of a spin on it, and it spiraled through the thrashing legs and Link reached to catch it. The blade came to him pointing up. Just as he tried to catch it, it rotated and the tip pointed down. Almost as a reflex, he moved his arm back, finally clasping it.  
  
There was a quick pause, and Link looked back at Marissa. Their eyes met. He smiled. She grinned back.  
  
While the creature's fangs snapped and somehow found their way under the shield, he twisted the sword around, until he could stab the blade into the monster. With all the force he could muster up, he thrust the Master Sword into the creature's forehead. He twisted it around, creating a deep wound that, hopefully, wouldn't be able to heal. He shoved it in as deep as the length of the blade would allow, causing the monster's extended limbs to retract, and collapse limply.  
  
The creature screamed as Link forced the sword out, holding it to the side to cut the monster more. He lowered the shield, just as he finished sliding the blade out.  
  
Link took a step back, praying to the goddesses that it was dead. The monster's body began to turn to ashes, as if it had been burned. It returned to the chrome liquid that had once leaked from the wall, sinking down into the floor. He took a few more steps back as the puddle slowly shrank.  
  
He noticed Marissa was next to him. Navi was glowing above her. "Great job, Link!!" the fairy complimented, as the puddle finally vanished. Link grinned and looked over at Marissa. "...Thanks." After a short pause, she returned the smile. "Your welcome." 


	38. Meeting Darkness

A/N ~ Okay, thank you so much everyone for understanding... and not hating me... lol! But seriously, my parents are WEIRD. But I'm back now, so yay. Thanks for the reviews!!! Oh my God, you all have no idea how much it means to meeee!!! Seriously!! (^__^) Hee hee! Well, in this chapter... they meet darkness. DUH DUH... The battle with Ganon is just beginning. (mwwwaaaaa haa hahahahhahah!!!) ::laughs insanely:: anywho, please R&R!! Thanks! (^. O)  
  
Disclaimer ~ I do not own Zelda, Link, or anybody but Marissa and some other people I'm too lazy to name.  
  
Chapter XXXVIII * Meeting Darkness  
  
Together, Marissa and Link saw one of the chrome walls ripple, then give way as a door suddenly appeared. Link was the first to step forward. She followed next to him. He pushed the silver door open, and they stepped into a small corridor with a winding staircase. "I think we're almost there." He stated, no emotion in his voice, as they began to climb the staircase. "Okay," Marissa replied. She looked at the stained-glass windows on the walls. They didn't let in much light. Only the torches against the wall gave off enough to see. Other than that, it was dark. Almost gloomy.  
  
She was scared. It seemed like only a while ago, she had woken up in the Koroki Forest. Now, here she was, climbing the final steps before the ultimate battle with the ultimate evil... she wondered if Link would be able to destroy the monster she had heard so much about. She wondered what would happen if he couldn't. Would Hyrule be destroyed? The beautiful land she had come to love so quickly? She couldn't let the happen. She wouldn't. But what could she do now? She had done her job; playing the Eternal Song and releasing the Eternal Diamond. Was the rest really up to Link? For the first time, she saw how he was carrying the fate of his world upon his shoulders. He was determined. And strong. Stronger than she could ever be, both mentally and physically. If anyone could save Hyrule, it was him.  
  
They continued their way up the steps. Link knew there was nothing more in the castle, but Ganon himself. There was nothing left but to have the final battle. This would be it. And he was determined to kill Ganon this time around. He was wounded. His shoulder still ached badly and stung. The scarlet blood was staining through the Zora Tunic he had used as a bandage, and into the green tunic. He arms were scratched, some cuts dripping with blood. He was low on items, too. The one thing he really needed was some more fairy magic. He had used most of it for the magic spells. Not to mention, his hookshot had been absorbed by that chrome-monster. At least he still had arrows...  
  
They had been climbing at least five minutes now. They had to be close.  
  
Marissa looked over at Link for just a moment. He didn't notice. Was he worried at all? If he was, he was doing a good job hiding it. As they got closer to the door, the sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach got worse. With every step they climbed, the lump in the back of her throat got bigger and bigger. And with every breath they took, the faster her heart raced.  
  
Finally, they came to the top. The climbed the last few steps, and before them was a door. It was onyx, with the ancient Hylian language scrolled across in a sparkling gold. In the center, was the Triforce.  
  
"Are you ready?" Link asked, looking at her. "I guess..." she replied, uncertainly shaking her head with a slight smile. "Let's save the world." he put his hand to the door as a confident grin spread across his face. He pushed the door open and they stepped inside.  
  
Marissa gazed around. It was an empty room with a tall ceiling. There were no walls; just windows. The three other walls were made completely of crystal glass. The wall with the door they had entered through was a dark crimson stone. In the center of the room was a blood-red carpet, with the sacred Triforce in the middle. The rest of the floor was a mirror. She looked down, surprised to see her reflection.  
  
A deep laughter echoed through the silent room. "Heh heh heh..." Link knew that laugh. He would know it anywhere. It was Ganon. "Heh heh heh..." he chuckled louder, and Link felt his hand begin to burn. Marissa was next to him, her heart pounding. Suddenly, in the center of the room, Ganon appeared, levitating, surrounded by a mist. "Heh heh heh..." he smirked, and Link's stomach churned. "What was it I said before...? Ah, yes." He grinned. "These toys are too much for you, Link. I command you to return them to me." 


	39. Prelude of Death

A/N ~ Hey everyone, I'm home from school sick. So... I decided to update, but only 'cause I AM feeling a little bit better. So, thanks everyone for reviewing! I really hope you'll all keep reading until I put the last chapters up... This chapter is pretty short, so I'll prolly type another. Please R&R! Thanks! (^. O)  
  
Disclaimer ~ No, I do not own Zelda. Nintendo does. (Duh.)  
  
Chapter XXXIX * Prelude of Death  
  
Link felt his throat closing. Ganon began laughing again. Marissa watched the evil grow in his eyes. "Where's Zelda?!" Link demanded. "Ah ha ha... Don't worry, your princess is fine. Heh heh heh..." Ganon looked up and the pink crystal that served as a prison drifted down. Zelda, her arms resting against the prism, cried out, "Link!! "Princess!" he looked at her horror-stricken face. "You both make me SICK!" Ganon snarled. "I'll never know why the Goddesses gave the other Triforce pieces to YOU TWO..." Link looked back at Ganon. "You're a monster!" he spat. "Let's get this over with, shall we?" Ganon snickered. "But first, I'd like to congratulate you on finding your way through my castle. You've got courage... but that's all." He paused and then added, "It also looks like you got yourself beaten to a bloody pulp!" He laughed, his eyes locked on Link's crimson-stained shoulder. "How pathetic! Zelda, heal your lover boy over there! It... just wouldn't be fair to kill him when he's already so wounded." Zelda looked over at Link, and raised her arms.  
  
Marissa watched as he was consumed by an ice-pink wave of light.  
  
As the scarlet blood staining his shoulder was washed away, the scratches on his arms vanished. He could feel the strength returning to his body and the amount of fairy magic he possessed was restored. He had his power again.  
  
"Thank you, princess!" Ganon smirked. "Your foolishness and pride will be your downfall, Ganon! You should have thought twice before you let me restore Link with my power!!" Zelda burst out, angrily. "Silence!!" He roared, turning to glare at her. "I've told you before, Zelda. I don't have to take any shit from you!!!" he yelled, throwing his arm to the side. The crystal she was in flickered then faded away. An aura of red light engulfed her, lifting her up. With another wave of his arm, Ganon sent her flying into the glass wall behind her. She cried out just as her body collided with the glass. She slid down, unconscious, as a drop of blood tricked down the side of her face.  
  
Link felt his anger rise. What he wanted to do to Ganon... "This time around, I'm going to make sure you DIE!!!" he shouted, his rage building to a peak. "Heh heh heh. Foolish boy!! I'd like to see you try!!!" Ganon laughed and threw back his cape. "You know you're no match for my power. I've got my Triforce piece, as well as the power I drained from Zelda, and those asinine Sages who are supposed to protect the Sacred Realm! "You're going to need more than that to scare me off, Ganon!!" Link yelled, his fists clenching at his sides. "Enough. You saw firsthand what I did to Zelda, princess of Hyrule, holder of the Triforce piece of Wisdom. I can do the same to your friend there," he smirked. "Marissa."  
  
"He knows my name...?" Marissa whispered uncertainly to Link. "Yes, I do." Ganon grinned at her shocked reaction. "Scared yet?" his smile got bigger. "I will say it now, Ganon. I am going to kill you. No matter what it takes, I promise you this. You're going to die." "That's certainly a mouthful for such a weak warrior, as yourself." He sneered. "Whatever it takes..." he repeated. "C'mon, then. Let's get this party started!" Ganon's lip curled as his face twisted into an arrogant grin.  
  
Link turned to face Marissa. She was starring at Ganon, anger and fear both apparent in her eyes. "Marissa," he spoke calmly. She looked at him, her emerald eyes tinted with confusion, asking why it had to be this way. For a moment, he said nothing. He took her expression in, studied it. Because, he knew there was always that chance... that he might not see it again. He wanted to tell her more. But now wasn't the time. Ganon was waiting. "Stay back here." He finally said. "Promise me you'll stay back until Ganon is dead."  
  
She looked at his pleading cerulean eyes. She wanted so much to give him her word that she would stay back. But slowly, she shook her head.  
  
"Please." He begged. "If something happens... I just can't stand here an do nothing!" she explained. "Nothing will happen. I promise." His voice was sincere. She took a moment to consider his words. After a pause, she said, "Be careful." He grinned. "Don't worry," he whispered. "I always am." 


	40. Commence Struggle

A/N ~ Whee, Chapter 40! I seriously wonder if mine's the longest on ff.net... (I doubt it is.) But I still have 13 chapters to type after this. Anywho, this chapter is basically about the battle, ya know, beginning and stuff. Lol. Please R&R... thanks a bunch! (^^)  
  
Disclaimer ~ Nintendo owns the Zelda games, characters, and other stuff. Not me. (It's getting hard to think up new disclaimers... lol)  
  
Chapter XL * Commence Struggle  
  
With that last smile, his eyes glowing, Link turned and walked over to Ganon. With each step, he got closer and closer to the final battle.  
  
It was time.  
  
"You're not going to win, Link." Ganon slowly said, still smirking. "I'm not afraid of you!!" he reached to unsheathe the Master Sword. Link was only a few yards away from Ganon, now. "You're not very good at lying." He chuckled. Scowling, Link held his shield out.  
  
Ganon began levitating upward, and he flew back. Holding his arm up, he created a sphere of red energy. "Hhhyyyaaa!!" he shot the energy blast to the ground, causing dark waves to spring up and flare out inches above the mirror-floor. Link leapt into the air, dodging the waves coursing through the ground. He landed back down just as the last wave passed from under him. "You're fast... but not fast enough!" Ganon laughed, unleashing another ball of crimson energy. The floor vibrated more this time, and Link wasn't quick enough. One hit his foot as he was jumping up.  
  
"Ahhgg..." he moaned, falling to the floor. More waves of dark magic attacked him, paralyzing his body. He tried pushing himself up after the waves ended, but failed, landing hard. "Hah hah hah!!!" Ganon laughed. "This is going to be even easier than I thought!!" Link looked at his flaming eyes, filled with hunger to destroy... to kill.  
  
His armored body came down, and he stood on the floor. "This is... just the beginning!" Link growled, finally forcing his legs to hold him up. "Surrender now, and maybe I'll consider sparing your life!" Ganon glared at him. "It's obvious you're no match for me, anymore." "Like I trust you! I'm not giving up that easily!!" Link held the blade out to his side, and charged fairy magic into it. He waited until a dark orange light surrounded the double-edged sword, and he began closing in. Ganon stood there, while Link charged up the sword as much as possible. With another step forward, the dark orange flashed and the sword suddenly sparkled with a brilliant white light. Link starred at it for a moment, and almost immediately realized it could be charged up to be even stronger because of the energy Impa had given it. Link looked back at Ganon. He didn't seem frightened in the least. Link knew he was now close enough, and he let a rip. The blinding light flashed as Link spun around. It engulfed Ganon's body and he cried out. The light continued to surround him, and Link saw it was draining him of his energy. Ganon finally managed to break free, and he out stretched his arms, causing the light to vanish  
  
"Hah!! Pitiful attack!" he snorted. "You're not good at lying." Link answered. "Not funny." He laughed after a moment.  
  
Link held the blade out in front of him, and he lunged at Ganon's face. He forced the weapon downward as it was about to hit him. Ganon stepped out of the way, causing the sword to miss his face by a few strands of hair. The deep red pieces fell to the ground as Ganon chortled, "Surely, you must have better aim than that!!" Link took a step back, and scowled. "My turn." Ganon outstretched his arm and created a bright red sphere of light. It glowed, and made a shrill humming noise. He released the energy and it went flying to the back of the room. The sphere bounced off the stone wall, and headed towards Link. He ducked down, barely missing it. Now it was heading for Ganon. It sped towards his chest. Reaching out, the ball froze. He pointed at it, and moved his finger around in a circle. The sphere rotated, and it was facing Link again. "Heh." Ganon sneered and the ball of glowing scarlet took off again. Link struggled to hold up the Hylian shield to protect him from the energy sphere. He felt it collide into the metal, and ricochet back at Ganon.  
  
This time, he didn't stop it. He stepped out of the way, his arm outstretched in front of him again. He was creating a second one...  
  
"Link, watch OUT!!" Navi shouted, her voice shrill with fear. The first ball had bounced off the glass wall before him, and was flying at him. He looked away front Ganon's fingers that were incubating the new energy ball, and leapt out of the way, dodging the one in front of him.  
  
Ganon released the second one, and it shot towards Link. As soon as he was jumped out of the way, he saw Ganon making a third. He realized he would just keep making them until there were so many, he wouldn't be able to dodge them all. He had to do something that would stop Ganon, and the red energy balls that were racing around. Just as a third sphere shot out, Link remembered that the easiest way to destroy the chaos was to use Din's Fire. The fairy spell was helpful because it attacked all enemies within an area.  
  
Link quickly pulled out the crystal and concentrated fairy magic into it. "Diiiinnn's... FIRE!!!!" he shouted, as the flaming dome rose around him and expanded, hitting everything in the middle of the room. When the fire had faded away Link saw the glowing spheres were gone, but Ganon was nowhere in sight. Link spun around, frantically panicking. Where could he have gone?! He looked up. "Heh heh... it's gonna take more than that, boy!!" Link's eyes grew wide as Ganon's massive fist came flying at his face. 


	41. Brutal Definition

A/N ~ Okay, chapter 41 is up. I have 100 reviews!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm sooooooo proud!! Thank you everyone... (^__^) Hee hee! Anyway, more fighting... this is another pretty short chapter. The last couple of chapters aren't very long either... anyway, please R&R! Thanks soooo much!!  
  
Disclaimer ~ I do not own Zelda.  
  
Chapter XLI * Brutal Definition  
  
It was too late to move. Link stood there helpless, a look of shock on his face, fear in his azure eyes. The dark clenched fingers swiped through the air, and pressed into the side of his face with an incredible force. He felt the pain sweep over his entire face, even before the strike. The thick fingers dug deeper into his flesh, as the sharp knuckles smashed into his nose. The fist forced itself deeper just as Link felt his jaw being pushed to the side, causing his teeth to cut into the side of his mouth. Ganon was going to break his skull if he forced any harder, Link was sure. He wasn't even aware when Ganon pulled his hand back and smirked arrogantly. The burning sensation didn't fade when Link opened his eyes that had been squeezed shut. He suddenly tasted blood. It seemed to be spilling into his mouth, leaving its coppery taste. Link swallowed hard and focused on Ganon, ignoring the pulsing inside his cheek. Ganon stood in front of him, grinning.  
  
Link felt something slip down to his chin. He brushed the back of his hand against it and saw more blood seeping from the corner of his mouth. Ganon's fist suddenly came flying at him again. He quickly ducked, and felt the powerful hand brush against the tip of his ear. He was going to have to be more careful.  
  
Link quickly gathered his energy and clenched his fingers together. He thrust the gloved fist into Ganon's chest as far as he could, and then decided to try using the Master Sword to do some damage, remembering that it would soon lose the power surge that Impa had given it. Ganon grunted and hunched over slightly, his hands at his wounded chest. He was surprised the punch had inflicted damage. Pulling the sword from its sheathe, he held it to the side and then slashed it across Ganon's arms. With a cry of rage, Ganon flew upward and panted as crimson blood dripped from the cuts on his forearms. "Grraahh!!" he groaned.  
  
Link shoved the Master Sword back into the sheathe and decided now would be a good time to take out his Fairy Bow and arrows. He would use the Light Arrows Zelda had given him to destroy Ganon before. He quickly got equipped, and took a step back as Ganon continued to pant. He took one of the sharp rods, positioned his fingers around it, and pulled back. It began glowing a dim gold as he charged fairy magic into the arrow. When it finally got brighter a few moments later, he aimed for Ganon's armored chest and fired.  
  
The glowing rod darted toward him and within a split second, penetrated through the dark armor and into his flesh. Ganon made no sound. He starred at Link, fury in his eyes. "No... I... will never... ever... let you win... with... such ease..." he stammered. He moved his arm to the arrow jutting from his chest. Slowly, each finger closed around it, and he held it in his hand. He yanked it out without so much as a flinch. "You are... so foolish... to believe you... can undo... the... evil..." he growled, tossing the arrow to the ground. Blood began to seep from the wound in his chest the arrow had created. "You are... forgetting... that the Triforce piece... that I possess... is power. The strongest of all... is I. Ganondorf, the King of Evil!!" he choked. "It's over, Ganon." Link said. "Heh. That's what you think!!!" Ganon shouted, lunging forward at Link.  
  
Marissa was still leaning against the wall, paying not much attention to the battle. She knew Link would win. He was surely a lot stronger than Ganon, the idiot. And it wasn't like she could hear what they were saying, either. She attempted to be honest with herself. It wasn't that she didn't care... because she did. But she was dreading his triumph... soon she'd be back in her own world. She would never see Link again. Why couldn't she stay in Hyrule with him? 'My parents never give a crap about me... no one would care...' she reminded herself miserably. She was happy here. But she knew she belonged on Earth... it wasn't fair. It was never fair.  
  
Marissa looked up immediately. Link cried a second time. Ganon was attacking him like crazy and throwing punches, knocking him over. Link scrambled to his feet, and kicked Ganon's stomach. It didn't seem to do anything. Ganon hit him again, his fist digging into Link's body. He felt the air forced from his lungs and he lost his breath, stumbling backward. The wind had been knocked out of him. Link looked up at Ganon angrily. "Hah hah hah!!! I told you, you will NEVER win!!" he chortled. He glared at Link who was still holding the Master Sword. Link saw that Ganon was still bleeding critically from the previous injuries. Surely, he had done some damage. "Come on. Let's get this over with." Ganon smirked. "After all, I have a world to take over." 


	42. Duel to the Death

A/N ~ This is chapter 42, Duel to the Death. Heh heh... yeah. Okay, there's a quote in here from a Savage Garden song "Tears of Pearls." Just so ya know... lol. Again, it's pretty short. Hopefully I'll have the rest of this fic up by the end of the month... but I'm really having problems thinking of another story. (lol) I wanna do an original story, but the story I have planned out isn't very interesting... oh well. Anyway, please read and review and make me happy to be typin' this for ya'll to read. :P lol! But really. Please review!!! (^_^) Thank you!!!!!!  
  
Disclaimer ~ Nintendo owns Zelda, Darren Hayes owns the lyrics to the songs he writes.  
  
Chapter XLII * Duel to the Death  
  
Marissa watched Ganon's lip curl as he sneered at Link. His eyes glowed, showing his confidence in his power. Link wiped the blood away from his cheek. Ganon had cut him with the metal plates on his onyx armor. The front of his tunic had been slashed open in areas, and Link was cut and bleeding there too. His left knee had been scraped, more blood staining the white material he was wearing.  
  
Link's eyebrows furrowed as he forced his arm to hold the Master Sword downward. He felt his anger growing, his temperature riding. It was time to fight as well as he could... it he wasn't serious, Ganon would win. He put all his energy into lifting the blade and springing off the ground. He pounced forward, throwing the sword out before him. It was aimed to slice Ganon's arm...  
  
Link saw the black arm come flying at him. It collided with his wrist and the handle of the sword. Link yelled as he was thrown backward. Ganon had thrown him high up, and he hit the glass wall hard. The impact caused him to drop the blade even before he hit the ground.  
  
"Ugghh..." Marissa heard Link groan. He was much closer to her now. She debated a moment about going over and seeing if he was okay... but he had told her not to move. Not until Ganon was dead... what if he was hurt? She saw him lift his head and struggle to stand up. He grabbed the fallen sword next to him, sheathed it, and took out his bow and quiver again. He loaded an arrow, and when Marissa saw it begin to glow with light, she knew he was charging it up. He released the golden arrow and it shot towards Ganon. "Hah!" Ganon's arm swooped down as he caught the pointed rod in midair, just before it hit him. Link had already loaded and shot a second golden arrow just as Ganon threw the first to the floor.  
  
This time, he was hit. The golden light penetrated his body and shocked him with all the force of electricity. His arms and legs flailed about as he shook violently from the single arrow's power. Link sprinted forward, taking the Master Sword back out and putting the arrows away. He reached Ganon just as he fell to the ground, gasping for air. Link began smashing the sword down with all the force he had left. He slashed at Ganon's body while he groaned in pain. 'This is it...' Link told himself. 'He's going to die...''  
  
Ganon suddenly sprung up, screaming. Link leapt back, then looked at the Gerudo's bleeding face. Crimson everywhere. Ganon had gnashes all over his body, each one leaking blood. Link looked down at himself. He had no new wounds... Ganon snarled, glaring at Link. Their eyes were locked. Link's held determination... so did Ganon's. There were more moments of silence. "We are... no where near... being... finished..." Ganon suddenly held out his hand. He created a tiny red sphere that continued to grow. Link took a step back. He knew what Ganon was going to do... With a second step, the red glowing ball was as big as Ganon's hand. Link tightened his grip on the sword's handle, and willed himself to pay attention to the energy attack Ganon was forming, and not the air stinging his cuts and scraps. Even bigger now... Ganon's scowl suddenly broke into a smirk. "Heh heh..." he chuckled as he turned so the sphere was aimed for Marissa.  
  
Link's eyes widened in the realization. He glared at Ganon, and then looked to Marissa. She was starring at him. She knew what he was going to do... her eyes pleaded with him.  
  
And it wasn't like he had to think twice. "No." Link firmly stated. "Leave her out of this. This is about you and me." He added. "What?! Don't want me to hurt your little friend? Awww... how pathetic." Ganon laughed. "I thought you were with Zelda." Link stared fiercely at him. "You know it makes you weak." Ganon spat. Link furrowed his brow and gritted his teeth. Ganon's eyes narrowed, and he starred at Link. "You'll twist and turn where angels burn... like a fallen solider, you will learn... that once forgotten, twice removed... love will be the death of you." his face broke into a grin and he moved his arm back and shot the energy sphere. It was heading for Link.  
  
He quickly tilted the sword and as the red sphere flew towards him, he swung the blade, forcing the ball of glowing, pulsing power to speed back at Ganon. Just as the light arrow, the sphere penetrated his armored body and he let out a scream of rage. 


	43. Closer

A/N ~ Oh, COME ON PEOPLE! REVIEW!!! (lol!) *Ahem*... sorry about that... ::nervous laugh:: anyway, I finally out up another chapter. But thanks so much to everyone who DOES review... I don't know what I'd do without you! (^_^) Yeah. Oh!! Ohh!!! OH!!! Guess what!! I finally found an idea for my new story!! It's gonna be called Dragon Seed, so look for it in the original stories section. (That is, when I start it... lol) Oh, and another thing... remember when I said this wasn't gonna be a marry sue? Well... I lied. (hee hee!) Ya see, I didn't plan on it turning out this way, it kinda just did. Sorry if I pissed anyone off... and it seems like you all like the whole Link/Marissa thing, so I think its okay, right? lol. OkAy, so please read & review, everyone! Thank you!  
  
Disclaimer ~ I do not own Zelda in any way, shape, or form. I'm just a fanfiction-author who wishes she did.  
  
Chapter XLIII * Closer  
  
The light created an aurora around him and he was lifted up. Rays of gold broke through his body, as he began shaking again. Link stood prepared to attack again. Ganon let out more painful screams and threw his arms out as if he was trying to break free of the energy's hold. The power of the light seemed to be draining all of his energy. Ganon cried out as more golden beams shot through his body.  
  
Suddenly, all the beams vanish, and Ganon fell to the ground, lifelessly. He landed face down on his stomach. Groaning, he lay there for a moment, then clenched his hands into fists and retracted his arms, pulling them closer to his chest. He began to lift himself up, then coughed. A mixture of white watery slime and a crimson substance spilled from his throat as he coughed. Link took a step back. Ganon moaned again and looked up at Link. Blood leaked from his mouth as he spoke. "We are not through yet... I... refuse to let you win... so easily!!" he shouted. Link said nothing. "You may be strong... Link... but NOT AS STRONG AS I!!!" he cried. More blood dribbled from his mouth as his head hit the ground. He was gasping for air.  
  
Marissa looked over to Link. He had a blank expression on his face. In one hand, he held the Master Sword, the other, the Hylian Shield. She began to walk over to him, when he abruptly turned his head. He made eye contact. "No, Marissa! Go back! It's not over yet!" Link ordered. "Huh...? What are you talking about? Ganon's dead!" she responded. Suddenly, there was another cry. They both starred at Ganon, involuntarily. He was on his knees, his hands at his chest. He slowly lifted his right arm, his fingers still balled into a fist. The three Sacred Triangles were glowing on the back of his hand. The top, triangle of power, his own piece, glowed the brightest of the three. His arm shot up into the air, and he let out a cry of rage. Golden rays of light began shooting out from the glowing Triforce on his hand. "Get back!!" Link shouted at Marissa. She stood gawking at the beams coming from his fist. "Marissa! GO!!" Link yelled. She finally looked back at him, and then took a few steps backward. More light exploded from Ganon's fist, and she turned and ran back to the stone wall.  
  
Ganon grunted as an aurora of gold light surrounded him, and he was lifted up for the second time. His angry screams filled the air, as more rays of light burst from his wounded body and bounced off the walls. A flash of yellow light consumed the entire room.  
  
Marissa blinked. It was bright white. She could see nothing but the bleached light that seemed to be everywhere.  
  
The oblivion lasted for a few moments. It began to fade away like a thick mist and soon she could see Link's body again. As it continued to clear, Ganon cried even louder, and there was the piercing sound of shattering glass.  
  
The light was just fading away when Marissa felt a cold blast of air hit her in the back with full force. Her hair went flying in all directions, and she furiously brushed her hands through it, trying to recapture the loose strands that were flying freely. Her hair was everywhere now, so she pulled out the elastic Malon had given her. She finally collected her billowing hair, and looked around to see what she had missed.  
  
The gray sky now surrounded them. The three glass walls had been shattered. They were completely gone, along with the glass ceiling. The mirror-floor was caked with a thick layer of dust from the explosion, and the blood-red carpet with the Triforce was soiled. Clouds swelled over the charcoal heavens, and the wind started up again. For the first time, she realized she didn't know where Link was. In only an instant, her mind began racing. Was he okay?! She looked around as the wind died down again. She spotted him bent over the edge at the other side of the destroyed chamber. She peered around quickly, checking to see where Ganon was. There was a glowing light levitating in the center of the tower. She looked back to Link, and ran towards him. Her khaki sandals crushed the broken glass and other debris under her feet. She made it over in time to see him pull up a delicate gloved hand. It was Zelda; she knew immediately.  
  
She got in closer and tried to help him pull her unconscious body up onto the floor, but he was already holding her securely. Link stood up, the princess in his arms. He carried her over to the stone wall, the only one left. Laying her down, Link stood back up and looked at Marissa.  
  
"Ganon is still alive. He's... evolving. He's done it before." He looked nervously over at the glowing light. "You still have to stay back. Promise." He looked at her seriously. She nodded. "If... something happens..." His words sounding slightly slurred. He hesitated, and then leaned closer to her face. She was looking down. She knew it looked like she wasn't paying attention. But she was. She knew how close he was... she knew, and her heart was racing. Link moved so close to her, she could feel his warm breath on her face; her lips. She hesitantly tilted her head up, ever so slightly. She strained to look at his eyes without moving her head anymore.  
  
Sapphire crystals... so deep... his eyelids half shielding them. For that instant, she doubted what she had fiercely told herself over and over... Maybe it wouldn't turn out badly... maybe something would change...  
  
There was a flash of light, and the moment was destroyed. Link moved back suddenly, his eyes darting to where Ganon was. He was a monster. 


	44. Genuine Evil

A/N ~ Yay!! Reviews... hee hee! Thanks everyone. I'm glad you're all enjoying this so much... heh heh... ::grins:: (^_^) Yes, so, we ARE nearing the end... Oh, and I put up the introduction to Dragon Seed! Someone go read it! [lol] I got one review so far... It was weird... lol. I finished chapter one this morning, and I have yet to put it up. Yeah. But ANYWAY... here's chapter 44. Please PLEASE r&r!! Thank you!!  
  
Disclaimer ~ Noooooooooooooooooooooooooo.  
  
Chapter XLIV * Genuine Evil  
  
Ganon's body had been mutated before, but now... He appeared to now be half pig, if that's what you would call it. The light was still just fading, but Marissa could make out his shape. She looked back to Link. He turned away from Ganon, and starred at her again. There was a moment of silence, and he finally took a step back. His eyes pleaded with hers. She gazed into them, and there she saw what he couldn't bring himself to say. She looked back at Ganon. Her eyes widened as she gawked at his glowing body, still surrounded by an aurora or light. The glow faded, revealing two horrible twisted horns, protruding from the sides of his head. He had a large, rounded nose that was a grimy shade of green. His scaled body was covered in shining gold armor including the hooves at the end of his stubby legs, and there was a shimmering red ruby in the center of his forehead. He flaming crimson hair now stood up, separated into three main pieces at the back of his head. His arms were bulky, and he was armed with two razor scythes, one in each gnarled hand.  
  
To Link, he looked all too familiar. He took a last look at Marissa, and then turned and started towards Ganon.  
  
Marissa watched Link slowly draw the Master Sword from the gold and azure crested sheathe. The closer he got, the darker the sky seemed to get. More clouds came across the heavens, gathering in large clusters. Ganon's yellow eyes glowed brighter and brighter... like two blazing flames. Ganon roared and threw his powerful arms up in the air. The two scythes hissed shrilly as they clanked together. They were the size of Link, Marissa noted. The tip of each came to such a sharp point; it looked as if they could puncture anything. She saw him move his shield so it was out in front of him. Ganon held his arms out and bent down. All in a sudden move, he swung his arms back up, and they came flying down at Link. In a split second, he had rolled between Ganon's legs. He was just barely missed by the two scythes that were crossed in the air, along with Ganon's arms. Link stood up from his somersault, and quickly swung the sword at Ganon's monstrous tail. He missed. Ganon spun around to face Link with lightning speed. He growled again, and swiped the two blades down at Link a second time. All he could do was dodge the attacks. This time, he threw his body up, and backward, and he flipped, doing another one as he sprung off his hands and landed upright.  
  
As Link lunged forward, the sword aimed for Ganon's back, Marissa wrapped her arms around herself. It was so cold... She looked over at Zelda lying against the wall, lifeless. The stream of blood that had slipped down the side of her face was dry now.  
  
She hated standing there. She hated standing there so much. Ganon was trying to slice Link into pieces, and she could do nothing about it. Clearing her throat, she turned back to Link. Now he was swinging the sword at Ganon's tail. He kept missing. The spiked tail finally stopped flailing around for an instant, and before Link could stab the sword into the flesh, Ganon smashed it down on him. He screamed as he was thrown backward.  
  
He knew he had landed hard as soon as he felt the pain shoot through his back. He tried to get to his feet, but he wasn't fast enough. Ganon took advantage of his situation and swiped his arm down. The scythe's blade brushed his elbow, just as Link rolled out of the way. Ganon snorted, laughing as Link bent his arm to examine the small, clean cut. It filled with blood and dripped to the floor. He gritted his teeth, and tightened his grip on the sword's handle. Link swung the weapon up, aiming for Ganon's face. Instead, the two scythes stopped him. The Master Sword collided with a clank and Ganon hurled the scythes out to the side, forcing Link back through the air once again. 


	45. Frozen Flow

A/N ~ Oh my God. Oh my God!! Okay, wow, I had a lot of reviews. Lol! You should have seen my mailbox... I was like, "Woah!!" hee hee... Thank you to everyone who is continuing to read the story, and giving me feedback... but "Reader", you're mean! ::cries:: I'll spell frickin Koroki however the hell I want, and Its not my fault ff.net doesn't keep the paragraphs I type the right way, with all the indents and such. I've tried to fix it, but I can't do it. And I do NOT have 44 characters! It's not my fault you can't keep them all straight! Go play the damn game!!! You coward!! Signing as anonymous! Oh well. You suck. And you're mean. But that's okay... yes, any way, I'm sorry that the chapters are short; I needed a way to separate certain parts. This was my first story with chapters [although it was my 6th actual story] so I'm not an expert at separating stories into chapters yet... (o. O) I'm only 13, here! I have a long way to go before I'm rich and famous! [LOL... I'm jp.] ::sigh:: ...Navi finally has a part in this chapter, she helps, and yeah. But the end of this is rather serious as opposed to how we started out, 'cause that's how I write... weird/funny in the beginning, while the end is serious. Also, I make changes wherever I think something should be added, but because I actually finished this story last month ['cause I hand wrote it and now I'm just typin' it] I'm not going to change the storyline. SO... thank you to everyone who reviewed... I love you... except for you, mean person who was a coward and couldn't sign their real name!! ::evil glare:: and please r+r! Thanks.  
  
Disclaimer ~ eeehhhh, no.  
  
Chapter XLV * Frozen Flow  
  
The pain exploded in his back as he hit the ground. This time he wasn't sure if he could get up. He felt something wet on his ear. Forcing himself to roll over, he touched his ear as he got to his feet. He saw the crimson blood on the tips of his fingers. Looking up, he saw Ganon bring his arm down at him. He missed. Link held the Master Sword out, and began charging fairy magic into it. Ganon stomped over to him, both scythes raised. Link jumped back as the swung down at him. Ganon snarled at his miss, and forced his anger into smashing the scythes into Link. He swiped them around wildly, the silver handle colliding with Link's chest. "Aaarrrhhh!!" he cried, and he collapsed to the ground. He raised his arm, holding the shield above his face and chest. The scythes swung around with cruel, bloody intent, and he felt them brush against his arms. Warm blood dripped from the cuts, down his arms, as he squirmed, determined to get under the shield's protection.  
  
Navi suddenly flew from Link's hat. The blue light hovered in front of his face. "Link! We aren't gaining anything, here!" "NO KIDDING!!" he shouted, gritting his teeth. "Look, I have an idea!" she quickly alerted. Link saw a red blur go flying across his face. His stomach lurched when he realized it was his own blood. "Navi, anything would be better than this!!" he cried. "Okay!" she darted upward, and she hovered over Ganon's head.  
  
'I hope this works...' she prayed silently, as she began to spin around. The tiny azure sparkles spraying in every direction, she rotated in great circles. Ganon continued to slash at Link's shield, and Navi went faster. She flew so quickly; she soon became just a blur. She was spinning rapidly around his two ghastly twisted horns, and she began to make the circle smaller. The fairy flew around still closing in, and finally she put her new attack to the test. The glowing light reached the center of the circle, and a blinding flash of brilliant golden light flooded the room.  
  
It faded quickly and Navi was floating above Ganon, who was frozen in time's flow. The last few sparkles that remained drifted down, glittering, and vanished before they touched the dust-coated floor. For a moment, she thought Link had been frozen too. She twittered over to him, and floated above his chest.  
  
Link's eyes darted to the left, then to the right. "Link, it worked!!" she shouted, excitedly. Her high-pitched voice echoed. "Navi, what in the name of the Goddesses did you do?!" he demanded, his voice a whisper. "I did it Link, I finally did it!" she cheered happily. "Did WHAT?!?!" he was becoming annoyed with the little ball of glowing light. "I froze time!!!" she blurted out. Link peeked out from underneath the shield after a moment. He saw Ganon's face, immobile with a look of ample rage. Looking back at Navi, he queried, "How long will it last?" "Long enough for you to get up and get in some good hits, I hope!" she answered. He paused for a moment, and then scrambled to his feet. Marissa had been frozen too, he saw. "Hurry, Link!" Navi reminded. She flew back a bit, and Link hooked his shield onto his back. He gripped the blade and looked around again, hesitantly.  
  
It just didn't feel right... he was attacking and Ganon was... defenseless. Then again, it was Ganon. The monster that was determined to take over Hyrule and the Sacred Realm... he had to be stopped.  
  
Link swung the sword out, and then sliced it into Ganon's arm. He saw it dig in deeply, but no blood came, as it was frozen too. He moved around until he had cut Ganon's arms and back severely. He was still hesitating. He finally realized that this might be his only chance to gain the upper hand. He put all the force he could muster into the next blow. It cut deeply into his back. The blade's edge almost went entirely in. Then, just as Link pulled the sword out, he stepped back and a tiny of circle of sparkles rotated in the center of the room. The gold dust suddenly flared out, and the room was filled with a thin mist of golden glitter. Ganon's head shot back, as he screamed. Blood seeped from the many cuts and gnashes the covered his bloody body.  
  
He looked to Link and he spun to face him. There was a long pause in which he glared at Link, the evil growing rapidly in his flaming eyes.  
  
"Link! I'm sorry I couldn't have-" the tiny glowing fairy was cut off. Ganon had silenced her by swatting her into the wall like an insect. Link could only gawk as her light faded and she drifted down to the floor. He turned his head back, and frowned fiercely at Ganon. "I always found that stupid fairy of yours quite annoying," He spat out. His voice was much deeper. Link gritted his teeth, and darted forward at Ganon. The Master Sword cut through the air, striking Ganon's arm. With a howl, Ganon threw the two scythes up. They came flying down at Link, and he quickly rolled out of the way. Ganon stood, gasping harshly for air. He turned to face Link again.  
  
They didn't move, their eyes locked for the moment. Link finally ran forward, the sword outstretched in his cut arm. Ganon's eyes glowed even brighter as he put all his strength into pushing Link back with the razor-sharp scythe. 


	46. Slipping Victory

A/N ~ ... M'kay, *Reader()* I have a lot of shit I need to say to you, so forgive me for making this a long authors note again. First, yes, I can spell Koroki however the hell I want. I'd like to see you try to stop me. If you don't like that, DEAL WITH IT. Because I'm not going back and fixing every time I spelled it wrong, just to get you to shut up. It doesn't seem to bother anyone but you. Secondly, I am sorry I misread what you wrote about 44 CHAPTERS. I DO make mistakes, I am human. And, because it is MY FANFIC, I will make my chapters any length I want. Third, you wrote, "I never insulted this girl or called her names." Yes ya did, buddy. Allow me to point out, "What the hell are you....? Stupid?" And, "...you idiot." Oh, and of course, "Are you dyslexic or what?" And, lastly, you said, "Everyone needs to improve..." Well, I hope you are aware that you are part of this group of 'everyone'. No one made you read my fanfic. If you didn't like it, you shouldn't have come back to make more comments and correct me some more a second time. As far as I'm concerned, you can't even leave an email address. Hah. That's awfully pathetic, for someone who seems so very bold about what they're saying. Now you've done your damage, so go screw with someone else, you asshole.  
  
(^_^) ::smiles innocently:: Thank you to everyone else! Please R/R!  
  
Disclaimer ~ I do not own Zelda.  
  
Chapter XLVI * Slipping Victory  
  
He saw the stars. They were the tiny bursts of light that flashed, mocking him. He saw them everywhere. They hurt more than the pain itself. It burned his eyes to look that them, as he was. He thought his skull was cracked. His temples throbbed with an incredible force, and they felt as if they could explode at any moment. He tired to force his eyelids to open but failed, when he could no longer stand the torturing flashing sensation his mind was putting him through. The pain was too much. He waited what seemed like a lifetime until the pulsing died down in his eardrums and he attempted to open his eyes again.  
  
Everything was a blur at first, and then the dark gray clouds came into focus. He felt the wind stir around him. It lifted off the soiled carpet, taking his body with it. He floated up into the air, into the heavens. At least... that was what it felt like. The clouds were rolling across the dark abyss and they swarmed, like dust after an explosion.  
  
He tried to sit up, but the pain that shot through every fiber in his body was too overpowering. It was overwhelming, and he was forced to put his head back down on the rough carpet. The most he could do was turn his head to the side. Off in the distance, he could see the broken towers that still stood. Ganon had destroyed such a beautiful place... and Hyrule was going to be next.  
  
'Ganon!' he suddenly thought. Where was he? Link's question was quickly answered. The ground he lay on shook. The stomps echoed through the floor, and he heard them. Pressing his head into the floor so he could hear better, he felt the vibrating come again. He quickly relaxed, and tried to climb to his feet. Ganon was approaching. More pain shot through him like an electric current. It left him panting; gasping for oxygen. He realized with a sinking feeling that he was helpless. He wasn't giving up; the pain was preventing him from continuing. It was so consuming, he couldn't breathe. He couldn't think. At this point, physically getting up was impossible. He knew it was useless to try. If only he could stand back up... "Whatever it takes..." his own words reverberated in his mind, hauntingly. But he would never give up. He couldn't.  
  
The vibrations got more intense, and the stomping got louder. As soon as it came to a stop, Link strained to twist his neck around and look straight up. His muscles didn't want to move. Ganon staggered, taking a last step forward. He looked down at Link, and their eyes met.  
  
His breathing was unsteady. He swayed; he couldn't stand straight. Link saw the dark blood still seeping from he dozens and dozens of cuts that covered his entire body. Link knew that he, too, was severely bleeding. He was weaker and drained of precious energy. He starred into Ganon's unforgiving eyes, and knew he was helpless on the ground. He wasn't sure if he had enough strength to still fight, even if he could get up. Ganon still towered over him, despite how wounded he was.  
  
The wind whipped his long golden bangs as he lay there unprepared, his mind racing. He didn't know what to do. Was Ganon going to attack? Suddenly, his upper lip curled and he grinned. The anger and rage had reached their peak in his eyes. "It's over kid." He managed to say without choking. "You... end here." Link listened to his threat, planning a strategy. He stressed to think of something, yet he could get nowhere. "You... should have never... EVER... messed with me..." he spat, becoming quieter with every word. "Welcome... to the end!!" he cried, rising the two double-edged scythes.  
  
One after another, he swiped the scythes down. Link had just enough time to grab the metal shield that had been resting next to him, and force it over his head and chest. He knew his arm was weak, and he couldn't hold the shield up for long. 'Oh, Goddesses...' he prayed. 'If this is my destiny... then so be it...' he thought. Link knew very well that's one destiny could never be changed. 


	47. Changing Destiny

A/N ~ ...::sigh::... I'm getting about 20 reviews per chapter now, and most of them are either people freaking out about how I spell things wrong, idiots like 'Reader()' who are just MEAN... and people who are trying to tell me what I need to fix professionally. Thank you, because I do appreciate that. Although I cannot fix the length of the chapters at this point, I am going back, proofreading and editing every chapter. Koroki will become Kokiri [only 'cause I love Zelda though. lol] and Ganon will become Ganondorf, because I had screwed that one up from the beginning. Because I've already done chapters 1-10, I did notice the many typos you were all talking about. I'm sorry that I'm not a perfect typist, but I'll proofread from now on. I'm also adding details, because I realized the beginning to this really isn't as good as the ending. Oh, and I'm trying to fix the whole spacing paragraph thing. I admit a lot of this story is not original. I believe my idea was, however. You see, I didn't know about ff.net until I was on chapter 15 in the story, as it says in chapter one. I had no idea people were doing the gamer-sucked-into-game theme. I was playing OoT [for the first time] late one night, was very hyper, and I was in the Forest Temple. I stopped to look at the guidebook, and stuck Link in the corner of the room with the black and white floor and the falling ceiling. He was facing the screen and all of a sudden I saw him 'adjusting his tunic' or whatever. I mumbled something, and thus, I got an idea for a story. I also didn't realize the Spiritual Stones were the Kokiri Emerald, Goron Ruby, and Zora Sapphire, or else I would have changed the name of the jewels in my story. [I swear to you, those two things are true.] Other parts of course, are just weird now that I look back at them, and yes some aren't original. I also said that it wasn't going to be a Mary Sue [Typical ending where original character and Link fall madly in love] but I realized that without that, I had no ending. It wasn't as exciting. Plus, I like writing that sort of thing. I'm sorry for pissing off anyone about that, or basically everything else. But, I'm in the process of fixing it, and I'm almost done putting up the chapters, so please R/R. Thanks.  
  
Disclaimer ~ I do not own Zelda.  
  
Chapter XLVII * Changing Destiny  
  
The sound of the scythe colliding with the shield made Link cringe. His arm throbbed in pain more and more each time Ganon thrust the scythes down.  
  
He was panting, and knew soon the shield would be too heavy. He knew it would hit the ground with a clatter, while Ganon grinned with rapture. Then the scythe would enter his flesh...  
  
And he would be everywhere.  
  
In an instant, Link felt an intense burning on the side of his face. From the stinging, he could tell that from his temple to his chin, a long streak had been cut.  
  
It wasn't long before the blood was on his ear, in his hair, and staining the rim of his hat. He could do nothing but ignore the pain and hold the shield up.  
  
His mind began to frantically race, drawing him into a full stage of panic. He searched for a way to pull himself up. If Ganon ever stopped, he could grab onto a piece of the body armor... but the chances of that were one in a million.  
  
Ganon was wasting his energy, smashing each scythe down into the dented metal of the shield. It was obvious Link had taken a good bit out of him. He was drained. But was it enough to allow Link one blow that could destroy him once and for all? He didn't think so.  
  
The blood that spewed from his slashed face was hot and it almost burned his own skin.  
  
He tried to come up with a plan, but it hurt too badly to think.  
  
Ganon's blows were slowing down, Link noticed. The monster gasped for air louder, and Link realized this was his chance.  
  
He couldn't get up, so... Frantically, he began searching for the Master Sword. He reached around with one hand, and panicked when he couldn't find it.  
  
He twisted his aching head to the side, and he spotted the handle, only inches from his fingers.  
  
It hurt so much to move... but he shifted over, and grasped the weapon, seizing it.  
  
He moved back, just as Ganon forced the scythe into the shield, creating an even bigger indentation  
  
Link twisted his fingers around, until he held it facing forward.  
  
Ganon was coughing, now.  
  
Link's grasp on the blade tightened, his fingers throbbing. The muscles were too worn to even hold it steady.  
  
He waited until Ganon threw the razor scythe down again, and this time the force was too much for his arm.  
  
His fingers retracted and they ached as well. They were cut and bleeding from holding the handle of the shield. It had dug into his flesh, slitting it open.  
  
The shield fell with a hollow clatter, just as he had imagined. Raising his head, he saw Ganon's eyes go from tired and weak to burning with ecstasy. His mouth broke into a twisted smile, and he glared at Link with pure evil.  
  
Link knew that there was nothing left to do but deliver the final blow.  
  
Ganon began to laugh as he raised both scythes for a final time. Although he was exhausted, he mustered all his remaining power.  
  
Link squinted he eyes shut, as the wind became more violent. It blasted into his face, and he tried to ignore it. But it made his eyes water, and he still couldn't think. It didn't seem to bother Ganon in the least.  
  
"Hah hah haaahh!!" he managed to choke out, as he stretched his arms out, bearing each blade.  
  
Just as he laughed, brining both scythes down at the same time, Link pushed everything aside; the howling winds, Ganon's laughter... but most of all, the pain that screamed for sympathy in every religion of his broken body.  
  
All in one single instant, Ganon used all his might to swing the two blades downward, as Link thrust the legendary Master Sword forward, guiding it with both hands. There was a bright flash of light that submerged from the base of the sword. It glowed a brilliant gold, then quickly faded back to silver. At that moment, Link released the blade and it penetrated Ganon's chest armor.  
  
A thick drop of crimson oozed out from under the puncture as his arms became limp, and both scythes fell to the ground. 


	48. Immortal

A/N ~ Chapters 10-20 are edited... if anyone sees an error in those chapters, I repeat, THOSE CHAPTERS... please tell me. The others have not been edited yet. Anywho, thanks for reviewing everyone. This chapter is... I'm not gonna ruin it. Some of you could probably... No! Must not say anymore! Just read it, lol. I really tried to make this chapter good, so please keep reviewing! (^_^)  
  
Disclaimer ~ I don't own Zelda, Nintendo does.  
  
Chapter XLVIII * Immortal  
  
Ganon fell to his knees, his chest heaving. The sword was half inside him, half out, heaving too.  
  
Link let out a groan as his head fell back down, and he rested it.  
  
The wind still blew harshly.  
  
Ganon tried to cover his bleeding chest, but it was no use. The dark liquid kept coming.  
  
For a moment, Link reveled the sound of Ganon panting. He was dying.  
  
But then there were still the cold winds and billowing clouds.  
  
He sighed. That strike should have done it. If Ganon was still alive... he didn't know what he could do but lay there helplessly, waiting for Ganon to kill him.  
  
"Stupid... kid!!!" he choked out, glaring at Link. "You... will... die..." he coughed up onto the ground; blood and saliva. A red strand still coming from his mouth, he slammed his bloody hands down onto the dirty crimson carpet crested with the Triforce.  
  
"DAMN YOU, LINK!!!!!!" he spat angrily.  
  
Link himself lay there panting too. He just wanted Ganon dead.  
  
"You... should know... by now... that you... can NEVER... kill me..." he shouted, clutching the handle of the sword that stuck out of him. He seized it, tearing it from his flesh.  
  
At that moment, Link realized why the sword had created a blinding flash just before he had shoved it into Ganon.  
  
'Impa said...' he thought, 'that the sword's extra power would only last a limited time...'  
  
He saw that the power Impa had charged it with was gone when it had entered Ganon's body. That was why Ganon was able to yank it out successfully.  
  
Link realized that now Ganon was in control. He was barely alive, but he could at least move, while Link lay paralyzed.  
  
He stared at Ganon, and a grin broke onto his face.  
  
Every fiber of his being tightened with tension. Ganon was holding the legendary Master Sword.  
  
Link's throat began constricting, and his stomach was knotting.  
  
He had to think of something...  
  
The Master Sword was still stained with Ganon's blood. It made Link cringe to imagine he was going to die this way. He just couldn't give up...  
  
Link looked over at Marissa; his neck was getting stiffer. She was watching him with her eyes wide and her mouth slightly open. She looked horrified. Her hands were clenching at her sides. She knew.  
  
Link saw him bring the blade back. Ganon was going to stab him.  
  
Tears welled behind his eyes. He was going to destroy Hyrule and the Sacred Realm and kill everyone he knew... and loved. Zelda would be one of the first. Marissa might never get back to her own world... and then Ganon would kill her too.  
  
'And I never told her...' he remembered with regret. He had never told her... and now it was too late.  
  
The wind tossed his bangs around, and Ganon's face twisted with rapture. Dark rapture. He wanted Link dead... and now was his chance.  
  
Link saw Ganon thrust the sword forward.  
  
He felt the icy metal enter his body.  
  
It was more painful than anything he could have ever imagined... like a thousand knives eating at him... like an inferno of flames licking his raw body.  
  
He thought his chest was about to explode... his eyes rolled from the blood spewing from the center of his chest, to Ganon's expression of ecstasy, to the heavens that were covered by the thick blanket of gray wind.  
  
His vision blurred, then came back into focus. It blurred again, and a sudden wave of dizziness and nausea washed over him.  
  
He could feel his stomach churning as his head began to ache even more.  
  
Link was forced to close his eyes... the pain was unbearable.  
  
In that instant, just as he closed his eyes from the world, the pain was gone. He felt his arms and legs become numb and limp. His head didn't ache anymore, and the pain in his chest disappeared. The dizzy feeling that had over come him faded away, along with the sickening nauseous sensation.  
  
He welcomed the foreign feeling of subsided pain, and strange presence of tranquility that had consumed him.  
  
His eyes flickered open one last time. He knew this was it. He had lost. Ganon was going to win. It was over...  
  
He thought about Marissa again. He had never even said goodbye...  
  
These were his last full thoughts. The rest were only fragments.  
  
Ganon towered over him, and Link looked to the sky. All sound faded to silence. His eyelids fell over the sapphire crystals that once held courage...  
  
He was gone.  
  
Marissa slammed her fist into the stone wall, as she turned away, a single tear slipping down her face. 


	49. Strength Within

A/N ~ I'm working on editing chapters 20-30. But for now, here's the next chapter... I'm sorry I killed Link! Really, I am! But I thought a lot about it before I decided to actually have it happen. And I'm also sorry if it was too gruesome for anyone. I thought it was okay, because I really cannot take a lot of gore. Oh well, though... I'm sick. Grrr, stupid cold. Anyhow... thanks for reviewing, everyone! And please r/r this chappy too. Thanks.  
  
Disclaimer ~ I don't own Zelda, Nintendo does.  
  
Chapter IL * Strength Within  
  
Lost in her own confusion, Marissa didn't move after that. She couldn't.  
  
She couldn't bring herself to turn and look back at him...  
  
He just couldn't be dead... not Link, Hero of Time... there were so many other people who deserved to die... but why Link? He was the last person in existence to deserve such a twisted fate...  
  
She squeezed her eyes shut tighter.  
  
Link...  
  
Ganon chortled, and she cringed. He was so evil...  
  
An unknown anger grew from deep within her.  
  
He laughed louder and louder. Her eyes were still closed. What she wanted to do to him...  
  
Her mind began to race over splinters of thoughts... she was too angry to complete them.  
  
She had never said goodbye... why Link... what was she supposed to do now... what made Ganon act this way... now she was alone with him...  
  
It probed the same questions over and over.  
  
Link was dead...  
  
Ganon's laughter grew even louder, and she opened her eyes. Everything was still the same.  
  
The pain was unavoidable.  
  
A grin played on his lips, and a look of dark triumph on his face reflected his eyes. They burned.  
  
He flew over to her, levitating about a foot above the ground. His voice echoed throughout the destroyed tower, and the heavens.  
  
"Hah hah hah!!!" he glared at her, and their eyes met. He was covered in dried blood, but his kill had seemed to restore some of his lost energy. He looked morbid... like he had just returned from the dead.  
  
He was barely alive. He should have died when Link stabbed him with the Master Sword.  
  
He stopped in front of her, and his laughter died.  
  
"Link was a fool!" he spat, smiling wickedly. "Weak." There was a long pause. "Heh. And you will be the next to die!!!" he said, in a matter-of- fact tone.  
  
His words made her stomach churn, and more anger grew inside.  
  
How dare he call Link a fool... he wanted her dead next...  
  
A sudden surge of power washed out from her soul, and over her entire body as she lifted her eyes from the dusty floor.  
  
In one swift motion, she turned towards him and shot out her left arm, as if she was trying to prevent him from coming any closer.  
  
"YOU MONSTER!!!!!!" she screamed, her fury taking over.  
  
She had snapped.  
  
Her anger released as she squeezed her eyes shut and hate consumed her.  
  
She wished Ganon would die...  
  
A ray of gold burst from her palm. The light, brighter than anything she had ever imagined, immediately attacked Ganon's broken body.  
  
Beams of brilliant shining gold light broke through his flesh as he shook violently.  
  
His screams rung out, and she opened her eyes. She couldn't even realize what she was doing.  
  
Ganon knew it would be enough to kill him. And he screamed.  
  
He threw his head back and roared as the light engulfed his body.  
  
Marissa's rage was freed by the energy that shot from her hand. She didn't even know what was going on... She was blinded by her own anger and hate.  
  
The gold consumed his flesh. It suddenly vanished. And just like that, he was gone. Ganon was gone.  
  
Marissa stood there a moment, his screams still echoing in her ears.  
  
The golden light had flared out and there was a thin mist before her.  
  
She slowly lifted her trembling hand, and starred at it. What had she done?  
  
It was like when she had played the Eternal Song, and she couldn't understand how she did it... how it just came effortlessly.  
  
How had she created the light?  
  
She only remembered anger... it had happened so fast...  
  
Marissa let her hand fall to her side limply.  
  
Her gaze slowly fell upon Link... she remembered he was still dead.  
  
Dead...  
  
For a while, she just stood there in a daze. Link was dead. Ganon was gone. She was alone. What was she to do now?  
  
She was no longer angry... she felt numb. It was so cold, suddenly. And she felt so weak... like she couldn't move, even if her life depended on it.  
  
She would have rather stayed there, content, leaning against the wall. But instead, she forced herself to step forward. Her footsteps were the only sound, and she left footprints on the soiled mirror-floor as she went.  
  
Slowly, she made her way to Link. 


	50. Angel

A/N ~ Hmm... In this chapter, something else happens that probably some of you have predicted... but I won't say anymore, lol. It's really short, too. I suppose I should have combined this and the next chapter into one, but I didn't, so oh well. [lol] Thanks for reviewing everyone!!! As I've said before, I greatly appreciate it. Hey, after this, only three more chapters until I'm done typing this!!! Lol. Yeah... oh, and please read my new fic, Dragon Seed. It's under original fiction/fantasy. I only have chapter one up, though. I should have more of that up soon, and hopefully I'll be able to put up the next ten edited chapters of this fic. So... please R/R! Thanks again.  
  
Disclaimer ~ I don't own Zelda, Nintendo does.  
  
  
  
Chapter L * Angel  
  
  
  
When Marissa was close enough, she stopped and stood there.  
  
His body was stained with crimson blood, and the Master Sword was still resting vertically inside his chest. The handle was crusted with blood and so was the blade.  
  
She took another step forward. Now she was standing over him.  
  
From there, she could see the long gnash on the other side of his face. The thin line ran from his forehead, down to his chin. The blood that had come from it was dark, and just beginning to dry. It had stained his hat and shoulder, and coated the edge of his ear.  
  
His ears... they were pointed at the tips. She remembered how she had made fun of him. After all, that was the only real difference between their races...  
  
She kneeled down, and sat with her legs bent and to the side.  
  
His legs were slashed and bleeding, and the Kokiri Boots covering his feet were stained with the red liquid that had run from the cuts on his legs.  
  
His arms were the same; scratches and cuts everywhere, and trails where his blood had dripped down and stained his gloves.  
  
'He died a bloody mess...' Marissa thought painfully.  
  
She lifted a hand, and moved it to Link's that rested limply at his side. She hesitated, but then stroked her hand down the soft leather glove.  
  
He was cold.  
  
She shivered, and drew her hand back.  
  
Closing her eyes, her mind ran over every detail of every moment she had spent with him...  
  
It was as if he had changed her...  
  
And now he was gone.  
  
She listened to the silence... it was so loud. He just couldn't be dead...  
  
Marissa looked up. Her eyes grew wide as she saw the sphere of glowing light. Startled, she jumped up and stumbled backward, nearly falling. The golden light grew larger, as it slowly descended from the cloudy heavens.  
  
It was almost blinding. It hurt her eyes to look at it. Her heart began racing as the light came closer to the ground.  
  
It was going to land behind Link...  
  
She took another step back, terrified. What the hell was it?  
  
The sphere became larger and it finally came to a halt as it touched the ground.  
  
From the center of the glowing ring, a young woman emerged. The light that engulfed her faded away, and she was left standing there.  
  
The beautiful girl stood smiling in an emerald gown with long flowing sleeves. The dress was covering her feet, and it had a green pattern at her waist. Her long hair was the color of spring shamrocks, and she had tiny strands that were a glittering gold.  
  
Her green eyes perfectly matched her gown.  
  
Sprouting from her back were two mystical wings. They were transparent, and glittered with every color of the rainbow.  
  
Marissa stood there a moment in awe, her lips slightly parted and her eyes unbelieving.  
  
'She must be an angel...' Marissa thought. 


	51. Light Restored

A/N ~ Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy! LOL. Chapter 51. Oh my God, I'm sooooo pissed right now. I finally got to play Majora's Mask!! And although Link is young and stupid and Tatl is mean and it has really bad songs [so far] and it's very complicated... I like the mini quests. Lol. I've just beaten the Woodfall Temple place and I'm headed for the mountains. But anyway... thanks sooooooooo much everyone for being loyal reviewers... lol, and thanks to everyone who's new to reading my weird story. Lol. Just keep in mind it's almost over... heh. Oh well. I really hope I didn't screw up this chapter because I'm not quite sure how great my understanding of the Triforce and the Goddesses is... lol. Another very short chapter... Please R/R. For what it's worth, enjoy! (^. O)  
  
Disclaimer ~ I don't own Zelda, Nintendo does.  
  
Chapter LI * Light Restored  
  
The ravishing woman finally spoke.  
  
"Do not be afraid, Marissa." She began. Her voice was soothing and gentle. Her smile grew. "I am Farore, Goddess of Courage."  
  
Marissa gasped, astonished. Link had spoken of the Goddesses to her...  
  
"Long long ago, I created this land with the two other Goddesses... Nayru and Din." She continued. Looking down at Link's body, she sighed mournfully. "Link... was the holder of the Triforce piece of Courage." She looked back to Marissa. "Link was chosen by destiny not only to hold that piece, but to save Hyrule from whatever evil that should befall it..." she paused, and starred down at his lifeless body. "Ganon... that monster... he has attacked this land many times before. However, this time the circumstances were very different. In order to enter the Sacred Realm, Hyrule needed someone else... you, Marissa. Link knew what he was doing, taking you from your world and bringing you here... even if he wasn't sure of it." She stopped again.  
  
Marissa's expression was solemn confusion. Her brows were furrowed as she strained to understand.  
  
"Link has saved Hyrule numerous times. If he hadn't been here to defend Hyrule, Ganon would have taken over long ago. Without Link, the Triforce would belong to Ganon. He's restored power to the Sacred Triangles so many times. He... he didn't deserve to die this way..." she shook her head sadly.  
  
"But... because he's saved our land from horrible fates... he has earned great honor. We will restore life to Link, the Hero of Time, just the way he's restored power to the Gods as well as the sacred Triforce." Her expression was sincere.  
  
At first, Marissa was unsure she had understood correctly. She was going to restore his life...?  
  
Farore slowly spread her arms out and lifted them upward to the gray heavens.  
  
An aura of golden light appeared, surrounding his corpse. The flames of shimmering gold engulfed the body, and the outline of the Triforce suddenly glowed mysteriously on the back of his right hand. The bottom right triangle slowly flooded with the golden light.  
  
Farore lifted her head to Marissa, who was starring in a mixture of fear and wonder. "Thank you... both of you." she smiled and was surrounded by her sphere of gold. The light encircled her, and she vanished within the glowing energy ball. It began to shrink as it gradually ascended.  
  
Marissa watched her fly up, and then dart off into the distance.  
  
She brought her attention back to Link in time to see his eyes flicker open. He sat up and, shaking his head as if he was trying to shake off confusion, he got to his feet.  
  
Marissa felt her heart skip a beat, as it suddenly quickened to an almost- painful speed.  
  
Link looked out into the distance speechless, and Marissa walked towards him.  
  
He was okay... just like that, he was okay...  
  
When he heard her approaching, he turned and their eyes met. She threw her arms around his neck, and sobbed, "Link..."  
  
He said nothing but hugged her too.  
  
She stood there for a moment, her forehead gently pressed into his chest, reveling in the relief and excitement of the moment.  
  
Then she turned and looked out into the Sacred Realm with Link.  
  
There was a sparkling wave of white light that literally washed over the gloomy land, reviving the glorious life. The dark streets faded to white and the buildings became whole again. Everything glowed with gold and the sky was painted over, becoming azure again as the dark swarming clouds vanished, giving way to the glistening sun.  
  
The sunbeams danced down on them and Link bent forward, deeply kissing Marissa just the way he had dreamed for so long. 


	52. Fade Away

A/N ~ Hello... um, sorry for not updating in a while. I don't exactly know what I've been so busy with... so... yeah. (O.o) Anyway, this chapter is really really sad. At least, I think it is. It's the second to last, too. Please R/R! Thanks!  
  
Disclaimer ~ Nintendo owns Zelda and Link and all the other stuff they have copyrighted and trademarked and whatever.  
  
Chapter LII * Fade Away  
  
Marissa sat next to Link with her legs crossed on the suede navy blue sofa. Outside, they could hear the laughter and the happy voices of those who lived in all the regions of the land. The balcony at the end of the room had its French doors open, also allowing them to hear the upbeat music that filled all of the market.  
  
The sun had just set behind Death Mountain, and the sky was painted with tropical colors; tangerine, peach, rose, coral, and lavender.  
  
The colored lanterns strung from tree to tree dangled outside and burned with the expectation that the celebration would last until dawn.  
  
Link leaned backward and sighed.  
  
After the Gods had warped them back to Hyrule, the three of them, Link, Marissa, and Zelda had all gone to the castle.  
  
The princess told them that they could get cleaned up there.  
  
But Link also knew that she was going to take back the Ocarina of Time...  
  
With another deep sigh, he gazed about the room. The atmosphere was warm and comfortable, something that was unfamiliar to almost every other room in the castle.  
  
The mansion was always quiet and lonely. At least, to him it seemed that way.  
  
But he particularly liked this room. The walls were a pale aqua and the four corners of the room were decorated with tiny blossoming trees in clay planters. The soft futon they were resting on went perfectly with the room.  
  
It was getting dark outside. Soon, the hanging lanterns would be the only light while the festivity carried on.  
  
He wanted to be down there with everyone else, but... Zelda had told him to wait here when he was done taking a quick shower. Farore had healed his wounds and Zelda had supplied him with clean clothes.  
  
Now they were just waiting...  
  
For once, Navi was quiet. Ganon had taken a lot out of her when he had slammed her into the wall...  
  
Ganon. Link still couldn't believe the story that Marissa had told him... about how a beam of light had suddenly shot from his hand, taking his life... Then how Farore the goddess had come fro the heavens and gave his life back to him...  
  
It was just incredible.  
  
He remembered kissing her... it had been so... perfect. Be now he would never see her again.  
  
He remembered how it felt to have his arms around her cold body... how it felt to kiss her with such... passion...  
  
He had fallen in love with her. He wasn't sure how... but he had.  
  
A cool breeze flooded the room as if it were stirring his memory. He suddenly remembered something he heard somewhere...  
  
"Marissa," he suddenly looked over at her.  
  
"Hm?" she turned to him.  
  
"Someone... someone once told me... that in every dimension the same spirits inhabit the same souls... but with different appearances or names..." he explained.  
  
She paused for a moment to comprehend. Then she smiled weakly. "Really?"  
  
He smiled too and said, "I believe it..."  
  
She grinned and then looked away.  
  
They sat in silence a while longer.  
  
It was completely dark outside now. Out on the balcony, the large moon glowed radiantly above the string of lanterns. The music played still, the talking and laughter louder than ever.  
  
Marissa and Link both looked up simultaneously, as the tall mahogany door opened.  
  
Zelda walked in.  
  
Link stood up respectively and Marissa mimicked him.  
  
"Link... Marissa... on Hyrule's behalf, I thank you for saving us all once again. Now that Ganon is dead, we can live without fear." She smiled. "But Link... I must send you back through time. It's not right that you can't live those seven years of your childhood. And Marissa... you belong back in your own world." she looked at them both regretfully. "I'm sorry it has to be this way..." she sighed, looking directly at Link. "Link; please give me the Ocarina of Time..."  
  
Link let his eyes fall to the floor, and slowly he put his hand into his pocket. His fingers closed around the instrument and he pulled it out.  
  
Zelda held out her hand and he looked at her. With a painful sigh, he placed the ocarina in her hand and drew his arm back.  
  
She smiled sadly and said, "Thank you..."  
  
The princess lifted the shiny chrome-purple ocarina to her lips and her eyes fell closed as she began to play.  
  
It was the same mysterious tune that Link had played a few times before. The noted drifted around the room and as the song ended, the two were surrounded by a white light.  
  
Marissa suddenly began to panic. 'Not yet...' she thought. 'Not just yet...' It was happening to quickly. She couldn't leave. It took all her energy to resist the temptation to grab the ocarina from Zelda and smash it to pieces so she would never have to leave...  
  
"This song has the power to send you back through the flow of time, Link... and to send you back to your own world, Marissa," Zelda explained. She took a step back and smiled sadly again. "Goodbye..."  
  
Marissa realized they were being lifted upwards by the mystical light. She looked over at Link.  
  
He flashed her a smile filled with hope. It made her suddenly grin back, just as everything faded away to darkness.  
  
But not Link's smile... Marissa doubted that would ever fade away. 


	53. Lonely No More

A/N ~ Nooooooo... the last chapter... I always get really depressed when I finish writing a story... hopefully, that won't happen though because I already went through that once, lol. [I just got the couple's mask in Majora's Mask and saved Kafei and Anju and it was really cool... hee hee!] Anyway, because this is the last chapter, I just wanna say thanks again sooooooo much to everyone for reviewing so many times. I can't believe this fic has over 200! (^_^) I also really hope you all like the ending... it's kinda interesting, lol. Yeah. So thanks for reading, and because this story is now completed, go read more of my stuff. [lol!] AND, I'd really appreciate any overall reviews... like, for the entire fic and not just the chapter. [I know, I should be happy I get any reviews, lol] Okay so please R/R. Thanks so much, and I hope you liked my Zelda fanfic. (^. O)

Disclaimer ~ Nintendo owns Zelda and Link and all the other stuff they have copyrighted and trademarked and whatever.

Chapter LIII * Lonely No More

Marissa's eyes fluttered open. She was exhausted... her body ached and she immediately sensed the dull pressure of fatigue pressed against her head like a weight.

She was looking up into the sky. She saw the leafy green treetops and heard the birds cheerfully singing. The sun was high in the blue cloudless sky and it warmed her chilled skin.

Instantly, she knew where she was. Earth.

At first, her heart sunk into despair. She missed Hyrule already... but she knew this was the way it had to be.

Sitting up, she balanced with her hands behind her and her leg bent. She strained to remember everything that had happened, afraid that somehow the events would stray and she would forget them forever. She couldn't let that happen.

With a sigh, she looked around and saw that she was in her front yard. She looked to her right and saw there was no car in the driveway. Her parents and Jacob were still gone. She wondered what day it was. How long had she been in Hyrule?

Suddenly, she spotted someone jogging towards her. Confused, she stared wondering what was going on. It was a guy. Why was he coming over to her...?

The stranger finally reached her and said, "Hey, it's about time you finally came around..." He outstretched a hand, offering to help her to her feet.

Marissa didn't know what else to do, so she starred up at him and gasped. His eyes... sapphires...

"Are you okay? You've been lying there for at least forty-five minutes now!" he said thoughtfully, smiling gently.

She grasped his hand and he helped pull her up to a standing position.

His hair was a golden blonde and he had the top of it over his forehead spiked up.

Still in a daze she answered, "I'm... fine..."

"Are you sure?" he moved closer to her and she saw that he was roughly three or four inches taller than she was.

She nodded.

"Oh, sorry!" he suddenly apologized. "I'm Leo."

It was getting more mysterious...

"I'm Marissa," she responded.

"My friends and I were going by and we saw you just... laying there. We stopped... they didn't wanna stay, so... I waited. Yow know, to make sure you were okay." He hesitated. He seemed embarrassed.

"Oh... thanks..." A smile suddenly played on her lips.

He looked down at her ankle. "What's that...?" he asked.

Marissa gasped, looking down. "The Zora Tunic..." she murmured, remembering Link wrapping it around her slashed ankle. She bent down and untied it. The royal blue cloth had no signs of ever being stained by blood, while her ankle had a tiny scar.

"Zora Tunic...? From Zelda? I used to love those games!" he laughed at the memory. "I must have played them all a million times!"

Marissa's jaw dropped slightly open. Her eyes fell as she remembered the last thing Link had told her... Her mind raced, and she realized she could remember every detail. Relief and anticipation flooded her as it played over in her mind like a movie...

"In every dimension, the same spirits inhabit the same souls..."

She blinked. And she smiled.

Marissa looked back up at him. He turned and they began walking.

"So... what was your favorite Zelda game?" he asked casually, chuckling a little.

She paused before she answered.

"I believe it..." he had said...

"The Legend of Zelda: Diamond of Eternity." 


End file.
